Seeking Origins
by Nature9000
Summary: Twenty years after her arrival into the Vega family, Trina seeks not only to find her real family, but to help a friend find the father that was dragged away by the same mystical force that came with her arrival. Matters are only complicated when she discovers not only the truth behind her birth, but that a dangerous witch is after her. For Trina, giving up is not an option.
1. The Baby

Seeking Origins

Disclaimer: Don't own Victorious, or Fullmetal Alchemist

A/N: This was a story I did long ago, with another fandom, that I took down for reasons I cannot recall. All these years later, I'm doing this in the Victorious fandom. Yes it's crossed with the Fullmetal Alchemist, I hope you'll give it a shot since I think you'll enjoy this redone piece. Here we go, if you don't know the anime (And it follows the first anime, _not_ the brotherhood one), either look it up or ask me and I will tell you all about FMA. It was the very first fandom I've done, that's why I've crossed it with this. Enjoy.

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Chapter 1 (The Baby)

Lightning flashed, and puddles splashed out with a large man's heavy footsteps. It was a cold, dead night, and Astor ran breathlessly through the streets as he sought to ignore visions of his beautiful daughter crying as he tore her child away from her. "I won't…allow…" Heavy breaths fell from his lips as his heart stung. "My daughter and my apprentice…"

Astor cradled the bawling baby in his arms, it wasn't more than a few months old. It's mother and father were sixteen, too young in his mind for a child. His apprentice hadn't been there when he took the baby, just his daughter. There was a sickening feeling in his gut, as though something wasn't right. The baby let out a piercing cry again and he gazed down as the rain drenched him and the child. "Shh, it's okay little one. I'm not going to harm you…you must understand, this is for the best…"

The baby gazed up with wide eyes and held her mouth open, but halted her cries. Her eyes began to glisten in the moonlight and her tiny fingers curled. Astor felt his own tears streaming down his cheeks and digging into his beard. "Don't look at me like that. This is what's best…"

"What are you doing!" A voice cried out. He looked back to see a man standing in the distance. This man had long brown hair, glasses, and a brown overcoat that hung all the way to his feet. _Hoenheim!_ "Where are you going with that baby?" Hoenheim Elric was a self-righteous piece of crap, though he had to admit, the man was spot on with several points.

"This isn't your business! Go back to your wife!"

"Sir-" Just then, his form began to change, striking fear into Astor's heart. What appeared in place was a lanky looking man with long, spiky greenish-brown hair and a pale complexion. The creature began charging for him, he held the baby close to his chest and began running the other way, screaming. "Dante wants a word with you."

"Dante? Who the hell…" Dante? Was this one of the alleged homunculi? He'd only seen them through his research books, a creation from someone trying to use alchemy on someone who had since passed. "No…"

"You won't get far. You're trying to kill that baby anyway, right?"

"Get away from me!" Suddenly the creature was upon him, a sharp pain was sent through his stomach and the baby went flying. He reached out, gasping as he watched the child land neatly in the arms of a woman with short brown hair and a permanent scowl upon her face. The baby began screaming and flailing her arms, and with that, Astor was beginning to realize what a crime he was doing.

"So you want this little one gone, do you?" Dante slowly walked towards him, reaching down to the pink blanket wrapped around the child and pulling it up. She narrowed her eyes and looked to Astor, who had now fallen to his knees and was trembling as blood fell from his wound and his mouth. "I know who you are…who your daughter is, and the man that fathered this one. I have no use for this child now, but the powers that she will grow up with…"

"What are you plotting?"

"Plotting? Oh I wouldn't worry too much about my plots…it is not like you will be able to speak your mind. A man like you, so willing to selfishly destroy your daughter's life by killing off her own child? Perhaps it is your life that should be 'lost'." His muscles tensed and he fell over, catching his palms on the ground and straining to hold himself up. "I will send this child away, somewhere where alchemy is minimally practiced. That way, she will not be made aware of her capabilities and will grow without knowledge." Dante looked down to the screaming child and tucked her lip up into a smirk. "In twenty years time, I will return for her."

"What kind of witchcraft…"

"You see alchemy comes from within." Dante looked back to him, slowly tapping her finger on the baby's chest. "It is constantly growing and needs to be used in order to be balanced out. The more it is unused, the stronger it becomes when the person finally uses it. In this world, it is always in use even when a person is in a dormant state…that's why she must be sent away. When I retrieve her, I can make her a part of my army."

He clutched his chest and struggled to breathe. A sharp feeling struck him in the side, sending him crashing to the ground. Dante rolled her eyes at the homunculi standing beside him, snickering at his pain. "Envy, do not abuse him, he will die soon."

"I-I won't let you." Astor began to pull himself up, groaning as his body began crying out as though someone was throwing heavy bricks into him. "I won't let you taint the child…besides…how would you find it after you've done away with it?"

"The Philosopher's Stone…" He raised an eyebrow and watched Dante pull a tiny round, glowing gem from her pocket. He recognized the tiny fragment and immediately tried to move for Dante, but was immediately tackled to the ground by Envy. He watched with fear as the witch touched the stone to the child's right shoulder, causing a fiery mark to appear. The baby screamed out in anguish while Dante merely laughed. "This will leave a mark on her that will vanish once she passes through my portal in twenty years time. For you see, when I retrieve her, she will no longer have use for this. However, it will be necessary to open the portal in the first place…enough juice for two, one to go, and one to come back."

"You bitch. It was a mistake, that child deserves to be with her mother, I realize that now…"

"Too late." She lifted her hand and Astor's eyes widened as a large flaming circle appeared before them. He gripped his side and screamed out as he attempted to push the homunculi off him. Several black arm-like vines rose up and grabbed the child from Dante. As the baby moved towards the portal, the woman looked once more in his direction and a dark look flashed over her face. "Envy."

"Yes master?"

"Kill him."

In Las Angeles, California, two couples sat together in a living room. David and Holly Vega, as well as John and Sarah Van Cleef. A young, two year old child played nearby with a wooden train, laughing happily. Holly put her hand to her chest as she watched the child, tears formed in her eyes. "Sarah, do you think I'd make a good mother?" The woman looked over with a subtle smile, she was newly pregnant with her second child, something Holly was near jealous of.

"Give it time Holly, I think when you do have a child, you and David will be great parents."

"I know I will be!" David laughed, overly confident in himself. He was a young police officer working the homicide division, so he wasn't around as often as Holly would have liked him to be, but bless the man's soul, he tried. "If we have a daughter, I wonder if I'll be the overprotective dad." Sarah and John laughed with him and Holly rolled her eyes, smiling at the three.

Young Sinjin looked up from his train towards the fireplace and began to whine. His parents looked over with concern as he released the train from his hand and stood up. "Burns," Sinjin muttered. John got up from the couch and moved over to Sinjin.

"What is it son? Is everything all right?"

"Too hot…"

"Hot? The fireplace isn't even on…" John scratched his head and turned to the fireplace, taking a slow step forward and ignoring Sinjin pleading for him to step back. Sarah frowned and lifted her hand, gesturing for him.

"John, we'll call someone for it. Sinjin." Sarah was often stressed out from all the legal work she had to deal with, so she wasn't too involved in the moment. Which, was actually odd, considering how much she watched over her family. Then again, even Holly was beginning to feel a strange shift in energy. Something was definitely coming from the fireplace, and whatever it was, she didn't like it.

As John turned his back to the fireplace, a giant circle of fire appeared behind him. Everyone gasped out, and Sarah's eyes widened with fear. She let out a screeching cry and John turned his head over his shoulder, freezing as several black arms started to come from the portal. "What the…"

"John! John honey, get over here!" Before he had time to react, the black arms wrapped around his body and began pulling him towards the circle. Sinjin cried out for his father while Sarah remained frozen with fear. Holly's heart began pounding.

Just as the man sank, screaming, through the portal, a baby was carried out. Holly began trembling as the child was placed at her feet. Sarah jumped from the couch and bolted for the portal, reaching out to her husband, but only grabbing air at the last minute.

He was gone.

Sarah whimpered while David scooped up the baby. Sinjin buried his wet face into his mother's side and slowly looked towards the infant, smiling slightly. Holly was beside herself with grief and uncertainty, how was she to react? A good family friend of theirs was gone now! "Hey look at this…" David motioned to a mark on the child. "This circle…what if it opens that portal up? We could research, maybe find a way to bring John back?"

Sarah looked over with quick, hopeful eyes. "Yeah, maybe. But what about the baby?"

"She's sweet." David cradled the child close while Holly gazed down with mild terror. "I think we should adopt her into the family. Holly?"

"Y-Yeah but…what about her real parents? Won't they…won't they want to see her?" She took the child into her arms and peered down as the baby looked up to her, huffing out a sob every few seconds. "We should raise her, but…" Holly saw a bracelet hanging from the infant's wrist. There were several small rubies and metal orbs stringed together with a heart pendent at the end. There was an inscription on the back, one that made Holly smile when she read it.

_"To our precious angel, Trina, we will always love you. RH."_

She had a feeling in her gut that told her the right thing to do was not pretend this child came from nowhere. Whatever that portal was, whatever was on the other side, this child had two loving parents missing their baby. "We need to research this mark, research what we just saw, find John, and we need to find her parents…" David frowned and gazed at her with some sadness in his eyes.

"Are you sure? I mean, you've always wanted a child…"

"I know." Her voice quieted and she slowly closed her eyes, hugging the precious infant to her chest. "It's the right thing to do though. We'll have a child, and we can raise this one right too, but only until we can figure out who she belongs to…"

"I suppose you're right."

"The bracelet has a message from, I assume her mom…they named her, Trina." David smiled at her and moved an arm around her shoulders, gazing down at the infant.

"Trina, huh? A beautiful name for a beautiful daughter…"

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So a lot of this will be Trina seeking her birth parents, trying to find a way to them, while also essentially fleeing from a witch who is after her. Tell me your thoughts for now, hopefully you'll give this a chance and see that you can enjoy it!


	2. Present Day

Seeking Origins

Disclaimer: Don't own Victorious, or Fullmetal Alchemist

A/N: Here's that second chapter so you can get more of a feel of present day. You don't have to know what FMA is by the way. Now hopefully some of you will take an interest, enjoy.

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Chapter 2 (The Present Day)

"Shouldn't you be celebrating your sister's eighteenth birthday?" Sinjin and Trina were resting at the teacher's lounge at Hollywood Arts, their own special 'café'. Being a Teacher's Assistant, Sinjin was allowed in the teacher's lounge by Sikowitz. They were at a round table, sipping on coffee and eating carryout from one of the local steakhouses. Trina looked up and a smirk curled on her face.

"And disturb her time at the skating rink with her friends? Oh don't tempt me _too_ much, Sinji." She knew she wasn't well respected or liked among her sister's friends, and even Tori had an air of superiority against her. She knew she didn't belong, it was no secret that she was 'adopted'. Most antics she did to weird out Tori and her friends were on purpose, just like Sinjin's antics were. "I thought we decided to cut them a break."

"It's only going to be more stressful on you now that they're all graduating in a month." School around here didn't end in May, but in the middle of June. Trina had her birthday already, back in early April when she turned twenty. Sinjin himself was two years older than she was, and his sister Courtney was a year younger. He enjoyed the students here laughing at him because they assumed him to still be a student, so much so, that he and Trina agreed never to tell them the truth of his career choice. Much to Sikowitz's annoyance. "You'll likely see Jade and the others at the house more often."

"What do I care? I'll change my living arrangements and move on campus if I have to. Not like anyone's going to miss me, right?" Only that would be far too expensive, she just didn't have the money to live on campus. Sinjin furrowed his brow and took a quick sip of his coffee.

"Or Courtney and I could use another roommate…"

"Not a bad thought." Sarah became distant over the last few years and Sinjin had been the one to pick up where his mother's research left off. Still they were trying to figure out the connection of the strange birthmark she had on her shoulder. Though, it wasn't like any birthmark she'd ever seen.

What they did figure out was it had to do with some practice called _alchemy_, something practiced by cults in this world. However, she wasn't of this world, she was of another world. Maybe in that world, alchemy was naturally practiced? She wouldn't know. If that was even the case. What was found was that it was called a 'transmutation circle' of some sort.

Their mother now lived in upper California, having moved away years ago when Sinjin decided to move out. Courtney didn't want to be apart from him, so she moved in with him. They would often need a third person there to help with rent in their apartment, but the last roommate moved away so they were looking for someone else.

As for Trina, she wanted to go into law enforcement and was always going down to the shooting range. People were amazed with how good of a shot she was. She didn't notice much difference between her and the average trainee.

Holly was gone now, having decided to divorce David and move in with his partner, Gary. David was a bit of a recluse now, always looking after his daughters. Though, he seemed more in tune with Tori than Trina, something she always figured had to do with the fact that she was adopted. Her mom made it clear she wanted Trina to be able to find her birth parents. Maybe her parents would be more parental than David or Holly.

"Have you made any further breakthrough on the portal stuff, Sinjin?"

"Somewhat, that thing opening up definitely has to do with the mark on your shoulder." Trina frowned and moved her hand over her shoulder, sighing heavily. Lately it had begun to burn, or at least, it felt as though it was burning. "All the books I've read about alchemy, stuff that's led me to something called a Philosopher's Stone, I can't make heads or tails of it." Trina cut a piece of her sirloin and forked it. Her stomach flipped for a second as a vision entered her head of a man running through a fierce storm. Like Sinjin, she'd had nightmares, but not as frequent. His nightmares usually involved seeing that fiery portal pulling his father away. Hers, while less, were a bit darker still than his were.

"So this alchemy stuff…the types of cults that practice it, do they believe in other worlds?"

"From what I've researched, yes. They apparently believe in another world where alchemy is practiced and is as natural as the air we breathe. However, I've found cults who say that in _our_ world, alchemy hasn't been in existence for ages."

"Ages?"

"About a thousand years. They believe something may have purged all the alchemists from this world into another world. There isn't much to go off on. I sent a picture of that mark of yours to one of the cult leaders that I found and they were so astonished, but couldn't figure a way to work alchemy. Too ancient a magic."

"Great…so I'm from an ancient time?"

"I don't think that's the case." Sinjin leaned forward and Trina raised up a skeptical eyebrow. She did _not_ want to be from an ancient world, it just simply wouldn't sit right with her. "The guy I found told me that he was a hundred percent positive that the world you came from is the same world that the ancient alchemists were sent into. He said there was a bit of a journal entry left over from that time, stating that it was a world that mirrored our own, almost, a world that followed our same timeline but with different results."

"Meaning if it was 1993 here, it was 1993 there?"

"Yeah. So now, it would be 2013 in both realms."

"Great…You know, you'll make a great historian one day." Sinjin grinned and Trina forked another bite of her food. She had a deep appreciation and admiration for him and for what he wanted to do with his life. He loved history, loved research, and was aiming to become a professor and future historian. He wanted to specialize in ancient times, so this research he was doing now was right up his alley. "Part of me wonders, if we find a way to reopen this portal…"

"People I've contacted don't think it's possible, Trina."

"I know, but I can't accept that." She smacked her palm onto the table, causing Sinjin to flinch. He understood where she was coming from, but that didn't make her any less furious that he would say such a thing. She was never giving up on this, not without a fight. "I mean nothing here. My own sister would rather trade me for her friends, my mom left us for another man, and Dad? Don't even get me started on what was once a great man." Sinjin frowned and reached over, gently patting her hand. She closed her eyes, breathing in sharply and exhaling with as much calmness as she could muster. She didn't have issues with Tori and the friends, no she'd made peace with their actions and attitudes. All she ever wanted now was to find her real parents. "My parents are out there, Sinjin. Somewhere. I'm _going_ to find them, I'm going to find a way…screw those cult leaders that don't think it's possible, there _has got__to be a way!"_

He smiled back at her and nodded his approval, "You've always had a lot of determination. I love that about you." She grinned back and ignored the blush growing at her cheeks. "Don't worry Trina, you came here somehow, so that means there has to be a way back. I'm not giving up on you, and I'm not giving up on dad."

"Right…your dad…he's out there too." She moved her other hand over his and looked him in the eyes, full of concern. "You think he's still alive?"

"He has to be, I'm not taking no for an answer."

"So if we find a way, and we go through that portal…"

"We go through together. I just don't know if we'll be coming back. If there is a way." Trina felt a mild sting in her right shoulder and winced inwardly. She was becoming used to these random sensations that she'd been having over the last couple of months, but they still took quite a bit out of her.

"Hopefully there's a way to get rid of this mark on my body too…but whatever, let's get back to your place."

"Not wanting to go home?"

"Home? You mean where my sister and her friends will be all day when they're done with skating? No, I think I'll not go there for a while. Besides, she told me she didn't want to see me today."

"I'm sorry…"

"It's fine." She and Tori had a brief argument this morning over the fact that Trina misplaced the shampoo bottle. She'd taken it out of the shower to clean it off in the sink, there was some strange smudge on it. She placed it on the top portion of the toilet when done, and left without thinking to put it back in the shower. Tori went on to say how Trina was always forgetting things, leaving things around, or messing things up, and then went on to say she didn't want her to screw up her birthday. "I'll let her get her way. Normally I'd go in and embarrass her and her friends, but I'm not in the mood today. This thing on my shoulder has just been draining me lately. I'm tired and need some rest."

"Right."

At Sinjin's apartment, Courtney was busy watching a butterfly sitting on the porch railing. The girl looked up to the duo with a grin as they walked towards her. Courtney was hoping to become an Entomologist in the future, Trina was supportive.

A legitimate career field, though Tori and her friends didn't seem to realize it. So when Courtney was in school, she would be teased for her fascination of the insect world. "It's a monarch, but look at these beautiful wings!"

"You don't say?" Trina inspected the butterfly with a growing smile. Her appreciation of the girl's interests led Courtney to admire her quite a bit. She didn't have many friends aside from Trina and her brother, but those she was friends with, were always close. "Normally, I can't stand insects, but butterflies are beautiful."

"I could show you this roach I found the other day." Courtney smirked and Trina shuddered, earning an eye roll from Sinjin. "I put it in the insect home I've been building. I'm going to donate all of them to the science labs downtown."

"Really?"

"Yeah, some guys are going to swing by today and pick them all up." Courtney stood up from the porch chair she was in and bounced over to the two. "By the way, Tori called a little while ago." Trina raised an eyebrow and looked over as Sinjin pushed open the front door.

"I care, why?"

"Said she's sorry about earlier, that it was stupid to argue over the shampoo bottle."

"I'm not going to the skating rink, she doesn't want me to show up for her birthday, so I'm giving her what she wants." Maybe they would find a way to open the portal, and if so, she could give Tori what she's wished for over the many long years. The wish that Trina would just 'go away'. "Once I figure a way to my parents, I'm gone. You know that, Sinjin knows it, and I know it. It's not that I don't care, because I _do_ care about Tori and I hope she has a great life, but I want my own life too. I can't be holding onto her forever."

"True…" They made their way inside and Trina instantly flew to the couch. She wanted to sleep off the pounding in her head. Her face strained for a second, causing Courtney great concern. "Are you okay?"

"Headache."

"We have some ibuprofen in the medicine cabinet if you need some."

"I could use some. Thank you."

Sinjin sat beside her and she instantly let her head fall into his lap. He chuckled at the sight and hung his arm over her arm and torso. "If we find a way, you'll at least say goodbye to your sister, won't you?"

"Sure I will, I wouldn't be leaving because of her or her friends. I've got my own reasons. I'm not meant for this life here, Sinji. I'm not running away from my problems, I don't resent Tori or her friends. Sure I may be angry with the way they've treated me over the years, but they're not the reason I'd be leaving. They don't get that satisfaction. Not this time, this time they have nothing to do with it."

"Right. Well…if we ever get that opportunity. You talk as if you've ran away before."

"Maybe in another life perhaps. I consider every time I've been upset over something they said or did and come to you, to be running from them."

"Fair enough."

She closed her eyes and envisioned a vile woman clutching her tight, laughing with a malicious grin. Behind her were seven shadows with glowing eyes, all whose names she knew for some reason. Envy, Pride, Wrath, Gluttony, Sloth, Lust, Greed. The seven deadly sins, known as a term _homunculi_. A term found in one of the research books sent to Sinjin by one of the people he contacted over the years.

She slowly opened her eyes and frowned as she gazed in fear at the ground below her. "Do…Do you think my parents are okay? Alive?"

"I'm sure they are. We'll find them Trina, I promise."

"I hope so…Your dad too." She lifted her hand up to his and gazed upwards into his comforting eyes. He smiled down at her, causing her heart to skip like a record. As long as he was there, she felt like things would be okay. They had to be, there was nothing else she would accept.

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Just to make it clear, and this is for Invader Johnny and Fanfic-Reader-88, there isn't a whole lot of emphasis on Tori's friends. Sure they may (or may not) be around, depending on how the story goes, but they're definitely not the influencing reason for Trina's actions, her sole purpose is finding her parents. Dealing with them isn't as heavy as it was in the last Victorious story


	3. The Gate Opens

Seeking Origins

Disclaimer: Don't own Victorious, or Fullmetal Alchemist

A/N:

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Chapter 3 (The Gate Opens)

The thought of other worlds was something of a fantasy to Trina, things she could only ever dream of. If she ever fathomed those thoughts to be real, she would have expected the fairy tales to be, not something that was practiced by cults or wiccan religions. It was a curious thing she wondered about, what would she be getting herself into? The truth of the matter was, once she found her parents, she had no intention of ever coming back to this world. Sinjin seemed to have the same resolve, but she didn't want to force him to stay if he didn't want to.

She did question if she would be missed, but to that same regard, she didn't _want_ to be missed. Even if Tori wanted to come with her, she didn't want that. No, this was something she had to do, regardless of her sister's whims. Tori made her bed already, and she could lay in it as long as she liked. This was Tori's security, Tori's haven, Trina never truly felt secure where she was.

Ever since the mark on her shoulder began burning, stinging, the dreams she had were becoming more vivid. She remembered a woman named _Dante_, murdering a man who took her away from her mother. She could barely make out the soft face of her mother, or the tears running down her mom's face as the woman's father tore her away from her.

Then there was a homunculi, Envy, who chased the man down. The creature's arm became a spike that was driven through the elder man. Then came the burning of a philosopher's stone, touching to her skin like a white hot iron.

Her eyes flew open and she found herself laying in a bed with a white rag on her forehead. Confused and perplexed, she sat up and felt of her face and neck. She was drenched with sweat, and her chest was heaving with every rapid breath escaping her lungs. "Trina you're awake!" Courtney's voice echoed from nearby. She looked to the door and saw Courtney with a bowl of water, smiling at her. "We were worried."

"What happened?" She pulled the blanket off her body and moved her legs over the edge of the bed. "I know I fell asleep on the couch…"

"Yeah, then you started shaking like you were having some bad dreams. Couldn't wake you up, so we moved you to the bed." Courtney hurried beside her and sat down, hugging her. "Glad you're okay."

"Thanks." She loved the girl's sweetness, she was almost like the sister Trina always wanted in life. One that looked up to her, respected her, wanted to be a part of her life, and didn't let people talk shit about her. "What's Sinjin up to?"

"He's in his study, reading through some more of those books."

"Oh okay, I'll go bother him then."

"Trina!" Courtney laughed as Trina pushed herself from the bed. Sinjin never liked to be bothered when he was in the study doing work or research, but that never stopped her. Sure, Courtney abided by his 'rules and regulations', as did anyone that came around, but she was a self-proclaimed exception to the rule, and he knew it.

She made her way through the apartment and into Sinjin's study, where he was at his desk with his back turned to the door. Smirking, she moved up behind him and leaned forward, wrapping her arms around his neck. He jolted upright and glanced back, smiling at her. "Good to see you're up, Trina. How are you feeling?"

"Better. What are you researching?"

"Homunculi. You mentioned them in your sleep, so I thought I'd take a bigger look."

She scrunched her nose and walked around him, kneeling at the desk. "Find anything interesting?" She folded her arms over on the surface of the desk and Sinjin quickly fingered through the pages.

"Homunculi are evil, soulless creatures created by something called human transmutation." Her eyebrow rose and Sinjin narrowed his eyes on a page. "These things are failed attempts of someone trying to bring someone to life. They feed off something called the philosopher's stone, which is said to have a very mystical power that should never truly be tampered with. Anyway, usually what happens is something called equivalent exchange, someone might literally give an arm or leg to bring someone back to life or something."

"Sounds like wiccan magic. Or what they say on that show, _Once Upon a Time_, where all magic has a price."

"Yeah, something like that."

"So…Homunculi are created from that. They're evil, soulless, how do you destroy them?"

"Not sure. I think it's something like you have to kill them a bunch of times. They're supposedly superhuman and they have energy fed into them from those small philosopher stone portions. I think there's also a way to paralyze them with like actual remains from the person they were transmuted from or something. It's confusing."

"Philosopher stone…what is that? How's it made?"

"It's made from…" Sinjin flipped through the pages of the book and stopped on a line, raising an eyebrow as he read under his breath. "Sacrificing hundreds of lives and souls in one transmutation to create a philosopher's stone…" A sickening feeling game over her and she quickly covered her mouth, resisting the urge to vomit at the visualization of all the innocents perishing for such a thing.

"What kind of evil psychopath…"

"Well, according to my contacts, such a thing doesn't exist anymore. At least not in this world. By that standard, Homunculi shouldn't exist either."

"Again, not in this world I'm supposing. From my dreams, I'm kind of guessing they're memories or something…there's definitely homunculi…"

"This world…that we'd be leaving to. It doesn't sound all that safe, does it?" He had a point, but there wasn't much choice. She pulled herself up. A crease formed on her brow as she stared down at Sinjin. He turned the chair towards her and gazed up to her with a slight frown. "I'm not saying we give up the hunt, but I _am_ saying that if and when we find a way to get over there…it's best we be careful, especially if all this alchemy stuff does exist."

"Yeah, I agree with you there…" She chuckled nervously and set her hand on the desk and over his. "What are the chances it's all real, though? I mean, it'd be safe wouldn't it? I'm not afraid of any dumb old homunculus…"

Sinjin stood up, chuckling softly as he gazed into her eyes. He lifted his hand and gently caressed her cheek. She closed her eyes and leaned into the caress, sighing heavily. "I wouldn't be afraid either. I'll be there for you, you'll be there for me." His hand moved away and her eyes slid open. A sense of longing filled her heart as he turned to the side and shut the book on his desk. "So long as we all stick together in what is a…strange place…we'll be safe. I won't let anything happen to you."

"Me either. If it is as strange as it sounds, then well, I'll stick by you until you find your dad." It was an undying loyalty they had for one another, and a feeling she didn't bother to question. She knew it wasn't the family here she got that loyalty to others from, it had to be of her parents. She released a sigh, though breathless, and started for the door. She had a very strong feeling that she needed to see Tori. She didn't know why, but she had to. "You and Courtney want to come with me? I feel like heading home…Courtney did say Tori wanted to apologize for earlier, so what the hell."

"All right." Sinjin chuckled and moved with her, "I thought you didn't care for her apology."

"I don't, but hey it's a first for her." She glanced at the clock on the wall as she passed by, it was 5:30. "She should be home by now, and likely with her friends, all ready to eat cake. Let's drop in uninvited." She twisted around and teased Sinjin with a seductive smirk. "We'll_ try_ not to ruin her day for her."

"Sounds pretty fair to me."

Once the trio arrived to the house, it was exactly as Trina predicted. Tori was there with all her friends, and David was sitting absently in his recliner. Tori and her friends were at the poker table while the half eaten birthday cake was on the counter. "Oh look!" Jade chimed nonchalantly as they walked through the door. "Trina and the nerd brigade's come through."

"Jade stop," Tori remarked. "Sinjin's cool…"

"Since when?"

Trina rolled her eyes and Sinjin smirked, wagging his eyebrows at the girl. "I've been cool since before your mother carved your heart out of ice." Trina closed her eyes and snickered while Jade scoffed. "But at least I can be warm and rich with blood, you'll always be as icy as the sculpture down at the mall."

"Okay you don't need to be rude…"

"I think it's deserved. Mostly from Trina, just saying."

"Yeah!" Courtney piped out much to Trina's chagrin. Tori started to sink in her seat as the friends all looked over, slightly stunned. Tori knew what Courtney was to Trina, like the sister she never truly had. "You've been rude to Trina all the time, and Tori's never stuck up for her, so I think some rudeness is more than overdue for you guys."

Jade turned to Tori, who was now staring down at the cards in her hand. Tori's face was red and sweat was dripping down the side of her head. "Tori tell your freak sister's friends to shut up." Tori lifted her head and opened her mouth, but Courtney beat her to the punch.

"She's not a freak. She's a _person_ and she deserves respect."

"And that's what she'll get," Sinjin added. "More woman than you are, Jade." She was beginning to feel a little embarrassed, but at the same time, she was enjoying the moment. After all, it wasn't every day someone put her sister's friends in their place. Sinjin looked to Tori and gave her a slight smile. "By the way, happy birthday."

"Thanks," Tori muttered, her voice was as quiet as a mouse. "I see why you like them, Trina." Tori set her cards face down on the table and stood up. "More family than we could be, I guess?"

Trina folded her arms over and raised an eyebrow, "Well…they _do_ treat me better. I've never heard you stick up for me when your friends are going on and on, but that's fine. I don't really care, I've got bigger fish to fry, you know."

"Right…finding your parents." Tori walked around the table as her friends started muttering about Trina's insane obsession with another world. Tori glared at them, and they silenced. "I just…I wish you'd see that we're family too."

"You've made your bed, sis. I know where you stand, and I'm not angry. I don't hate you or anything, I love you. You're my sister. I love dad too." She saw David look over, tears in his eyes. "Whatever happens, I want you to look after Dad, okay?"

"Why? Are you going somewhere, Trina?"

"I won't always be here." Trina breathed in deep and closed her eyes, ignoring the comments from Tori's friends about how 'nice' it'd be with Trina not around to bother them. Tori immediately shut them up once more, but still didn't say anything about having respect for her sister. "Mom's gone, Dad's going to need someone to look after him. I mean, he's quitting his job, for crying out loud! So promise me, you'll look after him?"

"I will…" Tori started to tear up and she reached out for Trina. "Stop talking like you're going away, Trina! You're not going anywhere!"

"Either way I am." Tori appeared exasperated and threw her arms out with a sigh.

"Huh?"

"Look. It's like this." Trina walked over to her sister's friends and squat between Jade and Beck. She put her arms around their shoulders, causing them to stare wide-eyed at her while she continued to look at Tori. "These people here, they're your family. You love them, they love you. You're closer to them than you are to me."

"Trina…"

"No no, I'm being serious here. I love you like a sister, but I know you're not my sister." She lifted her index finger to David and cleared her throat. "He's not my dad either. I'm going to find my parents-"

Andre scoffed and tossed his cards onto the table, "Who aren't even of this world, right?" Trina closed her eyes and sighed, she didn't know how they figured all this out but it was still easy to assume Tori blabbed that secret to them.

"Let's state for the record that they are in another country, along with Sinjin's dad. We're going to find them, I'm not going to _stop_ until I do. When I do, I am staying with them." Tori's eyes began to widen and she hurried over to Trina's side.

"You'd come back though, right?"

"Why Tori, this is the first time you've _ever_ shown me an ounce of affection. I swear you always say you never want anything to do with me." Trina rose up, and just as she stood, she felt an insane amount of pain in her right shoulder. Her hand flew up and she flinched, yelping out. The friends all rose up and Sinjin ran over to her. She felt like someone had just set fire to her, and the fire was spreading all through her. "God!"

"Trina! What's going on!"

Nobody could speak another word, for as quick as the pain was, it was gone. She removed her hand, panting as sweat drenched her hair and clothes. "The hell…" When she looked up, everyone was staring past her with frightened gazes. She spun around in time to see a giant flaming gate with a swirling vortex inside. "S-Sinjin, is that…" He stepped beside her and slowly nodded, keeping his gaze locked onto the portal.

"That's what took my dad…"

"Then that's it. Mom and Dad are behind there…" She started walking towards the portal, but Tori grabbed her hand.

"Trina please! You're not seriously thinking of going in there! Are you crazy?"

"She's always been," Jade shrugged. Tori screamed out and released Trina's hand, throwing her hands to her hair.

"Not _now_, Jade! Damn it, can't you guys shut up for five minutes! Just because I say I don't want my sister around doesn't give you permission to push her away all the time. Wait…" Trina crossed her arms and stared at Tori with skepticism, not surprised to hear the words that came from her mouth. Tori spun around to her, looking her way apologetically.

"Like I said Tori, I love you very much. I don't know if I'll make it back through that portal or not. I can't promise anything."

"N-No…" Tori shook her head, whimpering frantically as she reached for Trina's arm. Trina took a step back out of her sister's reach and shook her head. "Please, I'll do anything."

"You don't understand Tori, I _have_ to find my parents. I have to help Sinjin find his father. I can't stay here. Just…look after your dad, all right? Stay on good terms with your friends as well."

"B-But…"

"I _have_ to do this, Tori. You understand…"

"I never meant to push you away Trina. I didn't think it meant I'd lose you."

"Even if you didn't, you know this is still something I need to do. The research started with Holly and Sinjin's mom, all my life we've been trying to find a way to find them. Now it's here…though I don't know how…" She looked to Sinjin and he merely shrugged his shoulders.

"I have nothing," he remarked. "I didn't do it."

"Strange…" She hugged Tori, then David, and finally faced the portal. Sinjin and Courtney stepped beside her, staring into it with glances She looked over her shoulder to see Tori on her knees. "Just live your life Tori, maybe we'll see each other again. Who knows…" She turned her gaze to the bracelet on her arm and started to smile. Sure she had to add links in as she grew over the years, it was something she had to do since she never wanted to part with it. _"I'm coming mom…dad…"_

"W-What about school? All that?" Trina looked back to David and cleared her throat.

"Dad, let Sinjin's mom know about this. You guys can pull us out of school, just tell people we've moved." David slowly nodded his head, appearing weak and gravely upset. With that, the trio made their way into the portal.

Tori whimpered and fell to her hands and knees, screaming as the gate closed up. She instantly regretted taking Trina for granted all these years, but it was far too late to do anything about it now. Her friends circled her, and Andre put his hand to her shoulder. "Are you going to be okay?"

"No…but eventually…" She sat back and wiped her eyes, sighing heavily. "You always take for granted what you have…until you don't have it anymore…" She started to smile through her tears and shut her eyes. "I hope Trina finds her parents…at least..."

* * *

We've not seen the last of Tori, so don't fret. Trina, Sinjin and Courtney have gone on to find those who are missing, but do they realize what they have stepped into? What are your thoughts thus far?


	4. The Other Side

Seeking Origins

Disclaimer: Don't own Victorious, or Fullmetal Alchemist

A/N:

* * *

Chapter 4 (The Other Side)

Thrust from the gate, Trina found herself digging her fingers into thick green grass. She looked up into the blue sky, then in the distance where she saw a wooden house. The air here felt fresh and crisp, a pleasant change for the senses from the pollution and clutter of LA. She glanced over to Sinjin and Courtney, both of whom were starting to sit up and groaning.

Somewhere in the portal, they had all been grabbed by these disgustingly thick shadows. Sinjin rose above her and extended his hand down to her, she took his hand and let him pull her to her feet. "I think we've made it, but I'm not entirely sure where 'here' is. You all right, Trina?"

"Me either…and yeah, I'm good." Sinjin proceeded to help his sister up. Concerned that Courtney may have left her bug collection, she immediately looked to where the gate had once been. "Courtney, did those scientists ever come by for those insects you were studying?"

"Yes." Courtney rubbed her head and slowly looked around, mumbling about the new location. She immediately removed her phone from her pocket and stared down at it with thin lips and a mild groan. "No service whatsoever. Great." Sinjin chuckled and folded his arms over.

"We're in a different world altogether, I doubt they have AT&T or Verizon here."

"Of course not, we can't possibly be bothered to have that luxury." Trina laughed at the sarcastic tone in Courtney's voice. The girl chucked the phone away and growled. "I wonder what technical advances they have here."

Trina walked forward a few paces and rubbed her neck, "If Sinjin's research was right, they practice alchemy. Likely, they rely on it." She no longer could feel the mark on her shoulder, so she pulled her collar down to look for it. Sinjin and Courtney walked over as she let out an astonished gasp. "The mark. It's gone! Not a single thing left…" She looked up to him and started to laugh. "Can you believe it? It's _gone!_ All these years, hating it, and it's not there anymore!"

"I'm glad you're happy about that."

"Yeah. So what now? I mean…here we are, and we don't know where the hell we are."

He hummed and began scanning the area, pausing on the same house in the distance that Trina saw. "I say we check out that house down the road. Maybe someone there can help us out. I guess figuring out where we are _is_ the first step. I mean hell, how are we supposed to figure out where your parents or my dad is when we don't even know where to start?"

"Right."

Courtney huddled close to them, her body was shaking as she began looking around their surroundings, "Do you guys get the feeling we're not alone? I mean, none of us opened that gate up…so _something_ did."

"Are you guys lost?" They turned towards the feminine voice and Trina froze. There were two people standing before them. The taller person was a sultry looking woman with a long black gown that revealed a large amount of cleavage, and long black hair. The second person was a skinny figure with long, spiky greenish-brown hair, like that of the Homunculus in her dreams. "We're here to help you." The woman made eye contact with Sinjin. Her tongue left her lips and slid around them in a circle, leaving a slimy, glossy coating. Trina surged with rage at the woman's attempted seduction, but she refrained from charging the duo for fear of a sinister feeling creeping up inside of her.

"What _help_ do you think we possibly need?" Trina scoffed and clenched her fists. "Why do you think we'd need any help at all?"

"Because of that gate you just came through."

"How do you know about _that?"_

"Oh because of Dante, she called for you." The woman took a few steps forward, still keeping her eyes locked with Sinjin. Sinjin wasn't reacting in any way, which Trina greatly appreciated. She stepped in front of him and narrowed her eyes. "You see, there are several of us, all placed in various parts of the country. Dante was not sure where you'd pop out at, so she wanted to _ensure_ we'd find you."

"Who do you think you're trying to fool?" She looked back to Sinjin, then returned her gaze to the woman. "And quit eyeing him like a piece of meat, bitch!"

"I'm sorry, did I offend somehow?" The woman put her hand to her chest and started to smile. "You travel with some_ handsome_ company."

Sinjin threw his eyes to the right and let out a sudden scoff, "I'd hardly call myself handsome. Though you could be onto something, I've been told it before." Trina rolled her eyes and quickly stepped on his foot, causing him to yelp.

"Don't encourage her, smartass!" She braced herself for a fight, though was aware if these were in fact Homunculi, there was no human way to fight them. "What do you want, I know you're not good things. I recognize that one from my dreams." She pointed to the other one, Envy, and narrowed her eyes. Envy put his hand to his chest and smirked.

"I'm delighted you recognize me, you were just a baby last we met." Envy moved beside the woman and waved his hand in the air. "This one is _Lust_, by the way." She scoffed beneath her breath.

"How appropriate."

"Yes, well, you have to come with us one way or another. Dante wants you alive. As for the other two, she doesn't care."

"What if I told you…to fuck off?"

"Then you'd be playing a _very_ dangerous game."

"We're not going with you one way or another," Sinjin barked. The homunculi stared at him and Trina grinned as he took a step forward. "So you can go right back to hell for all we care." Envy rolled his head to the side, clicking his tongue with disappointment.

"Lust. Deal with him."

"My pleasure," Lust licked her lips and extended her arms. "Maybe I'll have a little fun before I slice him to bits." Trina's eyes widened, and before she could act, Lust's nails extended like a lance and struck Sinjin, then pinned him to the ground.

"Sinjin!" She started to run for him, but Envy jumped in front of her and kicked her in the stomach, knocking her back a few feet. Courtney let out a scream and Trina's head jolted towards her, Lust had slashed her in the side with her claws. Trina cried out as Courtney fell to the ground, clutching her side. Sinjin clenched his teeth and narrowed his eyes, struggling to move from under Lust's grip. "No! Leave them alone! Please!"

"Oh this is going to be fun," Envy grabbed her hair and flung her to the ground. She let out a grunt as he dug his knee into her back. She felt his icy fingers around her neck, tightening and choking the life from her. "Don't worry, it's only so you'll be unconscious."

He had her pinned in such a position that she was forced to watch Lust straddle Sinjin's waist. She clenched her teeth as Sinjin continued to struggle, Lust's hands touched his waist and her lips curled into a demonic grin as she flipped her hair over. "Get…away from him! What are you doing to him?!" She listened to Envy's guttural, evil laugh, and cringed beneath him.

"It's just what she does, she likes to try and turn her victims on before she kills them. Almost like a succubus."

"Sinjin would _never!" _She put her hands to the ground and struggled to push her body up. Her heart screamed out as she watched Lust's hands slide along Sinjin's body. She had to be free, she had to put a stop to this! "Maybe we shouldn't have come through…I just wanted to…find…"

"Oh it wouldn't have mattered if you came through on your own will or not. It was all Dante's doing, putting you through that gate both times."

"Now, Al!" A voice echoed through the air and Trina gasped out. Lust and Envy flung their heads up in time to see two giant metal fists flying into them. Lust screamed out and Envy bounced along the ground. Finally free, Trina bolted for Sinjin and hovered her body over him like a wolf guarding a wounded companion. Lust rose to her feet and fired off her nails once more, but a giant suit of armor stepped before them, shielding them. Trina was beside herself with disbelief, stunned to see a living suit of armor.

"What in the hell…" To her right, she saw a short boy with a long blonde braid running for Envy. He had a red cape, black shirt and black jeans. His arm was completely metal, like a prosthetic limb, and fully functional. The boy's gloved hand slid over the arm, forming a giant metal blade at the end.

"Shit, it's the Elric brothers," Envy exclaimed. His arms turned into spikes and he instantly charged the blonde. "You should mind your own business, Edward!" Envy stabbed at him, but Ed ducked out of the way. Ed then grabbed Envy by the chest and sent his metal blade through the homunculus's gut.

"Go to hell, Envy!" Envy leapt backwards, putting his hand to his wound. He narrowed his eyes and began panting as Ed stepped beside Al, the giant armor.

"This doesn't involve you,_ shrimp_."

Ed scoffed and lifted two fingers. "One, don't call me shrimp." He pulled his index finger down, leaving only his middle finger up. "And I'm involved now." Envy staggered back and removed his hand, showing the hole in his stomach closing up. His lips pulled back in a tight grimace and his eyes narrowed.

"You really don't know when to leave well enough alone, Elric. I say this doesn't involve you, because it doesn't. So go to your little girlfriend and granny over the hill, and let me do my job!"

"Let me think about that. Yeah, no, I don't think so."

"It wasn't an option!"

Lust flipped her hair over her shoulder and reached forward, placing her hand on Envy's shoulder. "Let's just report back, it's clear we're not getting anywhere right now." Envy sneered at Ed for a minute, then turned away, mocking Lust's order.

"Fine, but don't think you've seen the last of us…" With that, Envy and Lust were gone. Trina panted heavily and gazed down at Sinjin, his chest was covered in blood, and he had two blood stains on his jeans. To the right was Courtney, grasping the grass with one hand and holding onto her slash wound with her other hand.

She looked up at the brothers standing before her, trembling as Ed ran his hand through his hair. "We'd better get you three to Granny Pinako, she'll heal you up."

"W-Who are you?"

"I'm Ed, and this is my brother Al." Ed smacked Al on the back, causing a loud hollow echo inside of him. Trina's eyes widened and Ed slowly moved his hand away.

"I-Is he really _hollow?"_

"Um…yeah…"

"Oh god…how? Alchemy?"

"Yeah," Al replied, startling Trina. "Ed and I lost our mom and tried to do a human transmutation…it failed. Ed lost an arm and leg, I lost my body, so he put a symbol on me and bound my soul to this piece of armor." Al started to lift off his metal helmet, to which Ed shouted for him not to. When he did so and Trina saw nothing inside, she fainted on the spot, overcome with shock and exhaustion.

* * *

A close call within minutes of their arrival. Ed Elric is the Fullmetal Alchemist. Fortunately for Trina and the others, they stepped out on his home base.


	5. Science Fueled World

Seeking Origins

Disclaimer: Don't own Victorious, or Fullmetal Alchemist

A/N:

* * *

Chapter 5 (A Science Fueled World)

Trina awoke to the bright sun shining down on her face, she felt herself lying on a firm mattress with her feet touching a wooden board at the end. She opened her eyes and looked to the right, smiling at the sight. Sinjin was sitting beside her with a book in his grasp, and his gaze focused on the pages. Her eyes trailed along his body, taking note of the way the sun glanced off his broad shoulders and the way his bandages around his upper torso clung to him like a tight fitting shirt. After marveling over him for half a minute, she managed to tear her gaze away.

On the other side of the room, she saw Courtney making a bed, having recovered from her own wounds. It was a joy seeing the both of them up and moving, especially since she was so terrified that something had happened to them. She felt a slight pain in her back and arched her body upwards with a small groan. Sinjin immediately glanced over to her and closed the book.

"Good, you're awake." Sinjin reached down and tenderly cupped his hand over a small bandage on her cheek. She lifted her eyes to his, and the once firm mattress felt as though it had turned into air. She wanted to grab him, kiss him, cuddle with him, but she knew for every action there was a time and a place. "I was worried."

"I'm okay now. You and Courtney are all right, and that's all that matters." She cupped her hand over his and smiled. Courtney glanced over at the two of them and flashed a toothy grin. Trina sat up, ignoring the searing pain shooting through her body. "God I'm sore…I hope that goes away soon." She let out a soft groan and looked over to Courtney. "Hey Courtney, how are you feeling?" Sinjin looked to his sister and motioned for her to come beside them.

"Her injuries weren't as bad as they looked, but you both took a beating."

Who was he kidding? He was in worse shape than they were. Maybe he was acting tough. She wasn't sure. "We were fortunate the Elric brothers showed up when they did. We came out near their place." Sinjin looked up to the door in contemplation, then changed the subject in an attempt at deflection. "Courtney is a bit upset they don't have television here." Trina flashed a coy smirk while Courtney scratched her hair, growling in a mix of irritation and despair.

"You'd think there'd be more technology! No, there's nothing. Sinjin's perfectly at home with the books, though. I guess I'm going to have to get used to it. If that's what it takes to find dad and your parents, so be it." Courtney put her hand to her hips. "What I don't understand is they have telephone, though not cell phones. They have radios, so why don't they have television?"

"It's a possibility that they have it in the wealthier homes." Sinjin rubbed Courtney's head, laughing as she attempted to swat his hand away. "You're just going to miss all your nature shows aren't you, little sis?" Courtney sucked in a deep breath of air and narrowed her eyes.

"I'll live. I won't like it, but I'll live."

Trina looked to the doorway in time to see Edward Elric glancing in. "Oh hey! I thought I heard voices." Ed called for Al and someone named Winry, and then entered the room. Following him was the giant suit of armor that Trina _still_ wasn't comfortable with seeing. She looked to Sinjin and Courtney, both of whom were staring anxiously at Al. "It's all right guys, Al won't bite."

"Still can't get used to a giant suit of armor, that you managed to bind a soul to."Courtney mumbled. Al chuckled nervously, though his face remained the same. Expressionless, metal, iron-jawed, and disturbing.

A shorter, elder woman with a grey ponytail and spectacles walked through the door. "There are a lot worse things out there than a giant talking suit of armor. You just met two of them." Trina shuddered at the memory of Envy and Lust. A blonde girl came rushing in after her. The elder looked to her, then back to the group. "Anyhow, I'm Pinako. This is my granddaughter Winry, and you've already met the boys. They say you're not of this world."

"We're not," Trina stood up from the bed and leaned onto Sinjin for balance. "Well, I am, but they're not." Pinako raised an eyebrow while the others exchanged confused looks. "When I was a baby, I was born here. In this world." The old woman frowned and Ed lowered his arms to his side, looking sympathetic. "I don't know who my parents are. I don't know where they are, and some freak out there wants me for something. News to me, but at the same time, I'm not so worried about that as much as I am about finding my mom and dad."

"Well those freaks are what brought us here." Sinjin crossed his arms over his chest. Trina cringed at the thought of the homunculi, or even Dante, being responsible for opening that gate. She had never envisioned coming into the world through such a way. "I assume they're the ones that sent you over in the first place. Which means my dad might have run into them." His features hardened.

"Don't talk like that Sinjin, don't even think like that. We're going to find your dad too. Alive."

"Well it has been twenty years. I'm not counting Dad out just yet, but you saw those two things out there. If he ran into those, I can't imagine the shape he's in."

"Maybe he's resourceful," Ed grabbed their attention by talking over them.

Trina didn't know what to say, since she too was a little fearful of the status of  
Sinjin's father. She hoped he was alive, but if he came out of that gate with one of the Homunculi nearby, there wasn't much of a chance.

"I've been looking around for my own father for years. Even joined the military to do so. I have to report to the bastard colonel soon though." Al smacked Ed on the arm.

"Stop calling him that, Ed. He saved our lives." Trina stared at the two brothers with growing curiosity. Al caught her gaze and immediately faced her. "He's talking about Colonel Roy Mustang, the Flame Alchemist. Alchemy is…funny. It's different for everyone, but some people like Mustang can control fire while others, like Ed, can spawn metal. There are weaknesses to the power sometimes too. Colonel Mustang wears gloves with a transmutation circle on them, enabling him to use alchemy, but if those gloves get wet or ripped, he can't use anything."

"I thought it was a bad thing?" Courtney asked while still eyeing Al. Ed shook his head and walked towards a bookshelf. He removed a brown leather book and opened it.

"Let me explain this a little better," he began. "Alchemy is a mystical art of manipulating matter with natural energy. We call this transmutation. There are three types of transmutation. Comprehension, Deconstruction, and Reconstruction. Comprehension is an understanding of the structure and properties of a particular material you're transmuting. This gives the specialties Al described to you."

Trina meshed her brows together and walked towards Ed, gazing down at the book in his hands. "Okay. So what's the other stuff? Deconstruction, I guess is breaking down and reconstruction is building something?"

"Right. If you'll watch." Ed shut the book and walked to an end table beside one of the beds. He tapped the green vase on the table, knocking it onto the ground and shattering it. Trina took a step back so as not to step on the shattered material. Ed proceeded to use some chalk to draw a symbol on the ground while Al pushed the shattered pieces onto the drawing. He then put his hand to the circle, and in an impressive flash, the pieces of the vase fused together as though they were never apart. "Reconstruction. Alchemy is in all of us. Even you. It just requires being able to tap into the knowledge inside and working with it."

Unable to believe what she was hearing, she smirked and gestured her thumb towards Sinjin. "So even Sinjin here could practice alchemy?" Ed picked up the vase and returned it to the table. He walked back to the group.

"Yes. It comes more natural, though, if a parent was an alchemist. Our dad was one and we grasped alchemy at an early age. It's really more about knowledge and studying, the more you're able to understand, the better you can practice. Since we don't know whether you had a parent that was one or not, it really doesn't matter, just try alchemy sometime and see if it comes natural or not."

"And how would I be able to tell that?"

"Well, you could attempt to transmute a figurine. When Al and I were kids we made these tiny horse figures once. Mine came out extremely well and Al's needed a bit more practice, but we were still able to pull it off without too much effort. Mostly, study."

"I get it. What you just performed wasn't a trade, was it? I mean like, you were mentioning flame alchemy, metal manipulation…"

"Right," Al interrupted much to Trina's aggravation. She was fine learning this 'lesson' from Ed and had forgotten about the giant suit standing in the room. "There are a lot of paths to take where alchemists can transmute different substances. Such as water, earth, fire and air. The basic thing to remember is equivalent exchange." Trina and Sinjin exchanged knowing glances and Al took a pause while Pinako spoke the obvious.

"You've heard of equivalent exchange, have you?" Trina glanced back to Pinako and nodded.

"Not a whole lot. You see, in our world alchemy used to be practiced long ago and something sent all the alchemists into another world. This world. There are cults out there who know of alchemy, but know of no way to perform it successfully. In our research, we've found some leaders who told us about homunculi, alchemy, and equivalent exchange. Kind of like…" She took one sorrowful look at Ed's arm and watched his mouth curl into a frown. "Losing an arm and leg to bring someone back. Human transmutation."

"That almost always fails," Winry said. "I'm a mechanic. I had to attach that metal arm and leg to Ed when he did what he did. But equivalent exchange isn't just that. Granny says it's the most basic law of alchemy."

"That it is," Pinako said. "In order to obtain or create something, an item of equal value must be lost or destroyed. If you're doing what Ed just did, the material has the same makeup and build. If you're creating something, it must be there. For instance, Colonel Mustang creates fire from the particles in the air."

"Right. So alchemy isn't magic. It's a science."

"Makes sense," Sinjin curled his finger over his chin and stared at the vase on the table. "I remember reading the terminology in one of those books." Trina was overwhelmed and pleasantly surprised to find that this stuff was a science and not crazy magic. At the same time, she couldn't fathom what powers someone like Roy Mustang would have. "The law of conservation of Mass, and the Law of Natural Providence. Both of those go into alchemy, I'm guessing?"

"Correct. Conservation of mass states that matter cannot be created from nothing or destroyed to the point it doesn't exist. To create an object, let's say you're creating an object weighing ten pounds. At least ten pounds of material is necessary to create it. Destroying an object weighing a couple pounds, such as that vase, would simply reduce it to an amount of parts, the sum of which weighs the _same_."

"Okay…and Natural providence?"

Ed folded his arms and closed his eyes, he seemed to be growing annoyed with this whole education process. "An object made of a particular substance or element can only be transmuted into another object with the same basic makeup and build of that initial material. Something made of water can only be transmuted into an object made up of the same basic attributes as water."

"And Homunculi are the result of failed transmutations?"

"Human transmutation. Alchemists are not gods. When Al and I did what we did, we were young and stupid. Thought we could bring our mom back to life. It's one of the worst things an alchemist can attempt, and it will cost something terrible. For some it costs a limb, for others maybe an organ. The Philosopher's Stone is what people seek to correct that, I was seeking it to give Al his body back. It is the one thing that can override some of those laws of alchemy. I'm not even sure if it has the power to resurrect someone.

Trina sat back down on the bed."I don't want anything to do with the Philosopher's stone thing. I just want to find my parents and find Sinjin's dad. All this alchemy stuff sounds frightening, but it's good to know what to look for. Can you tell me anything more about these homunculi? They're monsters but they seem so human."

"They sort of are, but at the same time, they're not. We think they have a leader that's been feeding them bits of the stone, or some sort of makeup. Typically, all you're going to get when you attempt a human transmutation is a mass of flesh with eyes and a mouth staring back at you. Someone has done something to give them a more human shape and the powers they have. So far we know of seven homunculi. Pride, Envy, Lust, Greed, Wrath, Gluttony, and Sloth."

"I think their leader is someone named Dante…a witch that wants something to do with me." She pulled her collar down to reveal her shoulder. "I once had one of those transmutation circles on my shoulder. It's gone now, but I know she put it on me. I used to have nightmares and that's how I recognized Envy. Otherwise, I think I would have gone with them when they were offering help. In my dreams, this woman, she said I had alchemy in me…something to do with my parents I guess."

"Maybe." Ed glanced at the watch on his sleeve and muttered. "A topic for another time. We have to report to the Colonel, we're going to be late." He glanced up at the group. "Also, one more thing, if you can perform alchemy, you can probably do so without a circle."

"Why? Why would I be any different?"

"Because you've seen the gate. Many times, for reasons that we're not entirely sure of, if an alchemist sees the gate they can now perform alchemy without a circle. Usually happens after a human transmutation."

"But you just…"

"For show."

"I didn't perform a human transmutation so I don't think-"

"Regardless, you saw the gate," Al commented. Trina didn't want to hear this anymore, especially since she didn't know what it meant to be an alchemist in this world. Because of alchemy, someone was after her, and she did notlike that. "We may not have to report directly to the colonel, brother." Ed looked confused. "We have to find Falman at the library first."

"Okay, but still…" Ed motioned for everyone to walk with him. Trina wanted to meet this colonel. He sounded like an interesting guy. "These guys probably ought to swing by his office." Ed looked over his shoulder. "You're going to need a place to stay, and the colonel is the best guy to help you out with that. He helped us get on our feet, surely he can help you."

"Oh and he's got a real pretty lieutenant!" Al gushed and Ed rolled his eyes. "Brother had a crush on her once."

"I did not!"

"Yes you did."

"She's too old for me."

"She's not that old." Al let out a heavy sigh and turned to the group, walking backwards. Trina groaned at the sight and Sinjin merely shook his head. Courtney, still, couldn't stop staring at him. "Anyway, Riza Hawkeye is the first lieutenant. She's always by his side. Roy's staff is more like a family, really."

"Is there anything you can tell me about them?" She was hopeful and very interested in hearing about Roy's staff. If she could have some background information, then she could be better prepared to be introduced to them. Al shook his head and Ed scratched at his ponytail.

"I wish I could, but I haven't honestly spoken much with them. They seem like good people, though." She was disappointed to hear the news, but it wasn't the end of the world. Not one to be shy, Trina was confident in being able to talk to them. Ed counted on his fingers, trying to name them. "I know there's Lieutenant Havoc, Falman, Fuery, and Breda."

"Roy's a state alchemist," Al reiterated, "Just like brother!"

"State alchemist?" She wasn't sure exactly what that was referring to. She watched Ed pull a silver pocket watch from his belt and hold it up as if showing the world.

"It is supposedly a high honor. It just means you're a registered alchemist in the military." He returned the watch to his belt and glanced at her from the corner of his eyes. "I _do_ know that Riza is a tough woman. She's scary sometimes, you don't really want to piss her off."

Sinjin smirked and nudged Trina in the ribs, "Oh just like you!" She swat at his hand, causing him to laugh. Ed closed his eyes and lifted a finger.

"There is someone you should know, Major Alex Armstrong. He's a really big guy with a large personality to boot. He's got this curly hair and is, well, impossible to miss really."

"Okay."

"I'll draw you a map to Central HQ," Ed grabbed a coat off the rack next to the door and turned to the group. "I'll give you some directions to his office. Al's right, we have to get to the library first. Have you ever been on a train?"

"Once." Trina marveled over the memory and gave Sinjin a seductive, knowing smirk to which he replied with a smirk of his own. Courtney eyed the two, greatly confused "My adoptive parents didn't like me being out late at night, but I loved the night, and had just gotten into an argument with Tori. This was years ago. Sinjin and I snuck out in the middle of the night and hopped a ride on a local train. It was fun."

"Don't say it like that," Sinjin said. "You'll give people the wrong idea."

"Oh I know. I just like messing with people."

Ed rolled his eyes and walked out the door with Al and the others, "You're definitely going to get along with the colonel in that case. I was asking because we have to take a train to Central. It leaves in fifteen minutes. Since you've ridden a train before, then you know what to expect. Though the trains here aren't all that bumpy."

"All right, and by the way, thank you."

"For what?"

"Saving our skin back there. If it wasn't for you two…" Trina reached for Sinjin's hand and looked up at him with a great sense of relief. "I don't really want to think about what would have happened."

"Then don't." Ed shrugged his shoulders and started to smile. "It's just what we do. You know, you might search for that Philosopher's Stone. If you ever want to go back to your own world, that's what'll get you back."

"Really?"

"Yeah. There's science, and then there's the stone. I guess it's not on the forefront of your mind though, since you want to find your parents. That's also something the colonel can help with. The military's good at finding people. Sort of. We've been trying to find our dad through them all these years, but the we haven't found anything yet. Maybe one day. Either way, wherever the road you're on takes you, Al and I wish you the best of luck."

"Thanks."

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I hope you found the chapter...informative at best XD. True it was an information chapter, and I hope you're enjoy this thus far, do feel free to drop in and let me know your thoughts ^_^


	6. Arriving at Central

Seeking Origins

Disclaimer: Don't own Victorious, or Fullmetal Alchemist

A/N:

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Chapter 6 (Arriving at Central)

The train was a smooth ride, more relaxing than Trina had been expecting. The train in LA was rougher and gave her the impression that most trains were the same. Rough or not, she looked back on that train ride with endearment. She looked over at Sinjin and wondered if he were thinking the same. Leaning back, she closed her eyes and enjoyed the ride and a memory.

One night she snuck out of the house, an average action for a fifteen-year-old girl, and met up with him at the LA train station. Once on the near empty passenger train, they spent the majority of the night chasing one another. It was more or less Trina teasing Sinjin and leading him through the passenger cars.

After he caught up to her, he had her cornered with her back against the wall. Their bodies were pressed up against each other and their faces inches apart Hormones and emotions ran rampant through their bodies, but rather than act upon the new feelings, they separated from each other. It was the first time they felt those kinds of emotions between them, or at the very least, the first time they took notice of them. After that night, those new feelings remained for quite some time.

She made it home at six in the morning, and David was waiting up for her. He was sitting in his recliner, tapping his foot on the ground, and glaring at her. He grounded her for two weeks, but it was worth it. She never told anyone that she'd been out with Sinjin. It wasn't the first time, and it surely wouldn't be the last.

Trina felt a hand brushing along her left shoulder and she looked up to see Sinjin gazing down at her. He was touching a lock of her hair, letting it run through his fingers and looking at it as if it amazed him. She turned her head, set her chin on his shoulder blade, and gazed into his eyes.

"Hey there, we're almost at our stop," he said.

She let her eyes move to his lap where a book lay open. There were various alchemy symbols drawn across the pages with descriptions underneath them in an odd print. Courtney was sleeping on a pillow in the seat across the aisle from them. She lifted her hand to his chest and groaned. "I don't feel like moving too much." She turned her gaze up to his wire glasses. She reached up to touch the frames, causing him to move his head back slightly. "Why don't you wear your contacts? You know you look better in them, and you're always complaining about glasses."

"Well if they have contacts in this world, I'll look around. Anyway, how are you feeling?"

"Fine. I've been thinking. Maybe we should focus on finding your dad first, especially if those homunculi are around. We can always find my birth parents later." His bushy eyebrows lifted up and he shook his head.

"I couldn't do that. You've waited your entire life to find your birth parents, so that's the priority here. We can do both."

"You've been without a dad longer than I have. If we wait any longer, it might be too late."

"I hate to say it, and you know I'd never say it in front of Courtney, but it's been twenty years. We have to face the possibility that dad might not be alive. Especially if those things were waiting for him on the other side of that gate."

"Maybe." It was a bit of irony; even then, the law of equivalent exchange had been met. Because of her, Sinjin's father was taken through that gate. There was a genuine sense of personal responsibility she felt towards finding his father. In addition, she wanted Sinjin and Courtney to have their dad again. "You know something else I was thinking about?"

"What?"

"After we got on the train, Ed said something about a military ball. Maybe we could convince this colonel to let us go as guests?"

Sinjin chuckled briefly and looked towards the door of the train. He knew what this was about without having to ask, she often complained about having missed their senior prom."Why? We had a prom. The one your sister did."

"But that wasn't our prom. It was just a junior prom. We never went to our proms."

"Yet we spent both nights with each other. We don't need fancy music and dazzling lights to have a night to remember." She pouted her lip and Sinjin studied it with a slow growing smile. "If it means that much to you, I guess we can bring it up with the colonel. Though, with all we're going to ask him . . ."

"I know it a bit much to ask him to pull strings when he doesn't even know us. That's why I was going to suggest we hold off on asking for his help in finding my birth parents and just ask him about your dad."

"If it appeases you, but I don't want you to give up searching just because of me."

"It's not giving up. We can still look around. I just don't want to overload this guy. Ed and Al describe him as a busy man, so too much might make him unwilling to help."

"I do see your point." The train sounded its horn and Trina sat up as Sinjin closed the book in his lap. Courtney opened her eyes and stretched out her arms, yawning loudly. "Looks like we're here."

When they left the train, Trina was startled by how busy Central was. Every street was packed with people rushing to whatever their destination was. They eventually came across thelarge, majestic building that Ed described to them. It was five stories tall and had windows that lined the entire length. As they moved up the steps to the building, they saw a large man in blue military uniform. The man looked to the group and flashed a creepy grin when he waved. It didn't help that his blonde mustache looked like that of an old carnival worker and his hairless head glinted the sunlight into their eyes.

"Hello there!" The man hurried over to them and Courtney stepped behind Sinjin. Trina looked back at the girl and chuckled. It wasn't helpful that the man rose above them like a tower and looked like a mountain, but he might be able to help them find the colonel's office. "I'm Major Alex Armstrong."

"You're Major Armstrong?" Sinjin asked. Trina raised her eyebrows, remembering Ed's description of the man. He definitely fit the bill.

"Yes, not many civilians come this way without escort. Can I help you?"

"We're actually looking for a colonel here." Armstrong tapped his chin as Sinjin glanced to the front doors of the building. "Colonel Roy Mustang." The man moved his hand away, his eyes flashing with recognition. "The Elric brothers said he could help us out with the situation we're dealing with."

"Ah! Edward and Alphonse Elric sent you? I'm sure Colonel Mustang will be more than happy to help you out. Let me take you to his office."

"If it's not too much—"

"It's not, just a quick stop along my list of errands today. Right this way." The group followed Armstrong to the doors. Trina glanced up with an amused chuckle at Sinjin. He was bewildered at the mountain in front of them, and looked to be fighting back a laugh of his own. All things considered, Armstrong was definitely not as intimidating as he appeared.

As they neared Mustang's office, Trina felt a nervous sensation building up in her. She remained silent as Armstrong led them in and introduced them to the men sitting at their desks.

The office was relatively spacious. There was a window in the back with an empty desk in front of it and a swivel chair behind it. The nameplate on the desk declared ownership of the colonel.

There was a desk over to the left as well. Like the main desk, this one had stacks of paper and a typewriter, likely belonging to his aide. The desk faced them.

Behind that desk were four smaller desks, arranged like the dots on the number four domino and a man sat at each of them. One of the men had messy blonde hair. He was leaning back in his chair, had his legs propped up on the desk, and a cigarette in his mouth. At the desk next to him sat a heavyset man with a stern look and short reddish brown hair.

An older man with slanted eyes and graying hair sat in the desk behind the blond man, and a younger man with thick black hair and circular framed glasses sat behind the heavyset man. Armstrong looked to the man with the cigarette and folded his arms across his chest.

"Havoc, you know you shouldn't be smoking in the office." Havoc removed the cigarette and turned his lips up into a cocky grin.

"So long as Colonel Mustang and Hawkeye are out to lunch, I'm on break." Havoc stood and pointed the still burning cigarette at the trio. "So who are the guests? I'm Lieutenant Havoc, by the way, pleased to meet you. I'll put out the cigarette if it bothers you."

"It's all right," Trina said. She couldn't stand smoking, but it wasn't her place to tell him what he could and couldn't do. She was surprised when Havoc pushed the cigarette into the ashtray on his desk. "I'm Trina. This is Sinjin and his sister Courtney. We were hoping to meet Colonel Mustang. You said he's at lunch?"

"Yep. He'll be back in about an hour, so feel free to wait around." Havoc turned to the others and pointed to the heavyset man, younger man, and older man, naming them off respectfully. "That's Lieutenant Breda, Sergeant Fuery, and Warrant Officer Falman." They waved at Trina, each nodding as Havoc introduced them. Havoc turned to Armstrong and shot him a cheesy grin. "Is there anything else you need, sir?"

"No that'll be all. Look after these three until Colonel Mustang gets here, and don't even think of lighting up another cigarette in the office. You know the new regulations about indoor smoking." Armstrong turned to Trina and smiled politely. "I hope Colonel Mustang will be able to help you out with whatever you need. He's a man of few words, and he and Hawkeye can be strict, but they still have a lot of care for people. Don't let these guys scare you with intimidation tales."

"Okay." Trina laughed. "Thank you Major." When Armstrong left the office, Trina looked up to the clock above the door. Another hour to wait, but she hoped it would be worth it. "Lieutenant Havoc, I hope we're not disturbing you guys."

"No you're fine. Have a seat if you like. Make yourself at home." He pointed to the bookshelf. "We have a ton of books to read if you're interested. Also, if you like card games, it's a great way to pass along the time."

"Card games?" She chuckled nervously as Sinjin and Courtney walked to the couch. "My sister and her friends always loved to play card games, but they never liked to involve me."

"Well that's harsh. You should tell your sister to find better friends."

"I wish I could…" She heaved a sigh and walked towards the desk, not wanting to speak any more on Tori and her friends. She missed her little sister. It was tempting to find the stone so they'd have a chance to reopen that gate. Only three things were more important: her parents, Sinjin's dad, and the fact that it took thousands of souls to create and use a philosopher's stone. She didn't want to touch something like that. "I do, however, play a mean round of gin rummy." Her eyes flashed out the challenge and Havoc flinched.

"God no, we can't win that against Hawkeye to save our lives." Sinjin laughed.

"Give it a shot, maybe Trina will go easy on you. Just not gin, believe me, that's her A game. Never bet against her at it either." Trina rolled her head to the right and smirked at Sinjin, wagging her eyebrows.

"Good way to lose your shirt, right Sinji?" He coughed and Courtney let out a loud, disgusted groan. "Anyway, I hear the colonel is a flame alchemist?"

"Yes, and a good one too. He can even outrun Scar." Havoc nudged Breda. Trina felt a sting of concern and raised an eyebrow.

"Scar? Who's that?"

"Serial killer." Havoc leaned back on the desk and folded his arm. His once light expression grew dark and heavy. "The military has been pursuing him for years now. He goes after state alchemists and is known by the X shaped scar on his face. He's been in hiding for a while, but has recently been sighted around Central again. He's a very dangerous man. He has some sort of alchemic tattoo on his arm that does the work."

Trina lifted her hand to her forehead. All this bad alchemy was leaving a bitter taste in her mouth.

"He kills with alchemy?"

"It looks that way. Kind of hypocritical since he hates state alchemists and the practice of alchemy. He blames them for the destruction of his homeland. Scar was one of the survivors. The Ishbal Civil War, fought many years ago. The alchemists were forced to do many things back then."

"Mustang doesn't like to go into it. Hawkeye either," Breda said.

"So don't ask about it, I'm guessing?"

"Pretty much. One of the many sore subjects those two refuse to talk about."

"One of?"

"Yeah, like I think that war isn't the first time they met. They have a connection. There's no way a woman like Hawkeye would swear herself to protect a guy like Roy if there wasn't some sort of connection formed." Havoc swept his hand through his hair and pushed himself from the desk. "Whatever past they've shared, they've never told us."

"And they tell you everything?"

"We're all family." Fuery said. "We share a lot of things together. No other department has a bond like ours, but there are some things we just don't talk about."

"Right." Havoc walked towards the bookshelf and pulled a book. It had a flame insignia on the front cover and had a burnt sienna tone to it. "If you're interested in flame alchemy, I suggest reading this. Kill some time while waiting for the colonel to get back."

Trina took the book into her hands and gazed down, smiling slightly. To her surprise, the book felt very warm, and somewhat heavy. "Sure, thanks. I don't know why, but I've always loved fire. It fascinates me. I guess that's why I'm looking forward to meeting the colonel."

"Then you won't be disappointed." With that, Havoc returned to his seat.

Trina sat down beside Sinjin. He put his arm around her shoulders and she opened the book. This was going to make quite a read.

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Hope you enjoyed this chapter and have some good thoughts or questions. The Colonel and Lieutenant will be showing up next chapter, so be prepared.


	7. Meeting the Flame Alchemist

Seeking Origins

Disclaimer: Don't own Victorious, or Fullmetal Alchemist

A/N: Bear with me, the reason it's taking a while is due to my friend betaing this with me. Here's the next chapter for you

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Chapter 7 (Meeting the Flame Alchemist)

"I wonder if it would be good to learn this stuff?" Trina said. She looked away from her book and towards Sinjin. Courtney was asleep on his other shoulder and he was looking down at the book in her lap. "I mean think about it, I don't want to get caught with my pants down again. You know how I am about being vulnerable. It disgusts me."

"Yeah, I know." He glanced up with a brief anger flashing in his eyes. Only one thing could put that anger there. Being vulnerable reminded him as much as it did her of Tori's friends, but mostly Beck, who restrained her twice without Tori's knowing. It made him lash out once, and it gave her a sickening feeling whenever she thought of vulnerability.

It wasn't so much her dwelling, but rather, her knowing Tori was still back there with Beck, Jade, and the rest. "Sinjin, I hope Tori's doing well. I really do." Sinjin absently tapped his fingers on her shoulder and leaned his head back onto the couch.

"I know you do. I don't know if there's any way back, but after everything's said and done, if you want to go back, I'm sure we can find a way."

"Part of me would love to see Tori again, but at the same time, I know I want to stay with my mom and dad once I find them. Homunculi or no, Dante or no, I don't want to go back there."

"What is back there for us anyway? You have Tori-"

"Whose best friends are manipulative, manhandling, and all out creepy."

"They're not all that bad. Just Beck." Sinjin smirked and Trina smacked his chest. She'd long since moved on from those moments.

"Yeah whatever. Anyway back to this book, Ed said I wouldn't have to use a circle," Sinjin hummed as Trina read the words on the page. "It's got a lot of good information and techniques. Maybe I can ask the colonel to teach me some things."

"You're frightening enough without the fire."

"Very funny." A light went off in her head and she looked up, gasping softly as she felt a rush of excitement come over her. "This place. Ed described the military like law enforcement. Sinjin, it's my dream." Granted, she was more attuned to law enforcement than the military, but she'd not seen actual police officers in the city thus far.

"If it's what you want to do." He moved his arm off her shoulders and leaned to the right. "Go for it. You've always wanted to get involved, now is probably a good opportunity to do so. I've been reading up on this country since we got here, learning everything I can. You can bet I'm enjoying myself. There's no reason you can't live your dream too. Even Courtney's bound to find her niche soon enough."

"I know right?" She lowered the book to her lap and leaned back. She glanced to the window with a forlorn expression and slight longing in her heart. "I'm glad I didn't ask Tori to come. I was about to, but I knew she needed to stay back and look after her dad. With what we encountered when we arrived, I don't think I could stand seeing her have to deal with it."

"Yeah, but it's not her mission either. She has no tie to being here. I understand how you feel though. I wasn't sure about Courtney coming along, but she wasn't taking no for an answer. It's only right that you miss Tori." Anger spread over her face and spiked in her heart.

"I don't know why I do. I mean she never cared for me until she realized I was going to be gone. She took me for granted and let her friends get away with doing and saying whatever they wanted when it came to me."

"You miss her and care because she was your sister. Maybe not blood, but it's just like you and Courtney consider each other sisters, Tori was yours. Maybe she took you for granted, walked over you like a doormat, but you were still sisters. It's natural to miss her."

The irritation inside simmered out. Sinjin was right. At least this way, it could be assumed Tori was safe and not being hunted down by strange, superhuman creatures bent on murder.

Just as a calm silence was coming over the room, they heard voices outside the door. A man with a deep tone sounded annoyed and was ranting. "I'm telling you, I'm getting tired of your grandfather always trying to hook you up with every single man in the building. I know he wants grandchildren, but damn." Trina pursed her lips and Sinjin snickered, resulting in Courtney waking up.

"What-What's going on?" Courtney asked. Trina reached over Sinjin and pat Courtney's leg, then pointed to the door.

"I think someone's coming in."

As the door started to open, Trina could hear a woman's voice. Her voice was soft and relaxed, almost like that of a harmonious melody. "I'm in my thirties, I'm single, I can't help it if my grandfather thinks I should marry and have kids by now. Which, he's right. I can only think…"

The door opened fully and the two stepped inside, their gazes immediately fell to the couch. Trina was in awe of the two, as they had a very straight, tall, and commanding figures. Colonel Roy Mustang was tall, wore a blue military jacket and a long black coat. He had dark hair, his bangs falling in front of his sharp, piercing eyes. He had a narrow and handsome face and his shoulders were broad and arms muscular.

Riza came up to his shoulders, if not an inch or two taller. She had golden hair up in a bun. She was slender and had an oval face like Trina. Her eyes studied Trina and the bracelet on her wrist for a second before glancing into her eyes.

"Hello, nice to meet you," Riza turned to Havoc and the others, they'd been busy dealing with the reports on their desk all this time. "How come nobody contacted us in regards to guests? Stop working now and explain yourselves." Havoc dropped his pen and smiled at the two.

"We didn't want to disturb you guys at lunch."

"Hmm, it's good to meet you," Roy said as he moved to his desk. Roy folded his hands over each other and propped his elbows on his desk. Havoc cracked a joke, resulting in Roy giving him an angry glare. "I am not in the mood, Havoc. Today is not a good day."

"Oh no, we came at a bad time?" Trina didn't like the upset tone in his voice, now she feared they'd be turned away. She watched Riza walk over to her desk, and then returned her gaze to Roy. "Um…" Roy narrowed his eyes and Trina took a small step forward. "I apologize. It's just we have nowhere else to go."

"Homeless?"

"Well um, not really homeless. I guess you could look at it that way. It's weird. We need your help. We ran into the Elric brothers, they sent us to you."

"Ed sent me more work? Lovely." Trina frowned and fidgeted with her belt for a second. She wasn't sure why, but she felt nervous as well as star-struck. There was something so different about him when compared to the other people she'd met during her journey so far.

"Enough," Riza rolled her eyes and Trina turned towards the woman. "Roy isn't usually this grouchy. It's just that today is a difficult time for him. And Havoc isn't making it any better." Riza glared at Havoc, who immediately went back to his work? Trina nodded. Riza turned back to her and smiled pleasantly. "What can we help you with? And Roy will help."

Roy closed his eyes and leaned back, sliding his palms gently on the desk. "Of course I will. You'll have to forgive my attitude." Trina was concerned about why they were upset, but she didn't want to intrude in something that was none of her business. It sounded like they were arguing outside the door, so she figured it was important to tread lightly. "What can I help you with? If Fullmetal sent you here with good intentions, I won't turn you away."

"Thank you." Her heart lifted up and she slowly made her way to the desk. Roy stood up to eye level; he was roughly the same height as David. He had the same strong build, the same demeanor, and clearly the same basic level of command in his department. "I'm not really of this world. It's hard to explain. " Sinjin and Courtney got up from the couch and walked up beside her. She looked over at Sinjin and immediately thought of his father. "We were brought here, I guess from the homunculi and their leader, Dante. Sinjin's dad was brought here too. A long time ago."

Roy moved his hands behind his back and turned his gaze onto Sinjin. "So you're trying to find his father?"

"Among other things, yes." Sinjin started to say something about her parents, but she kicked his ankle before he could say much. What little he did get out, Roy heard. Roy turned to her and raised an eyebrow.

"Your parents are lost too?"

"I think so. I know I was born here. Dante and her homunculi brought me over. I have no idea who my parents are, but it's more important to find Sinjin's father."

"I see…" Roy looked to the book on the couch, his eyebrows arched up in surprise. "You're interested in flame alchemy?"

"Yeah, Ed said it was likely that I could perform alchemy. I like fire, so maybe I could learn the art. Who knows? Anyway, I haven't introduced myself yet." She pointed to Sinjin, then Courtney, then put her hand to her chest. "That's Sinjin, his sister Courtney, and I'm Trina." Riza walked over, extending her hand.

"It's good to meet you, I think we introduced ourselves. Riza Hawkeye." Trina made eye contact and shook Riza's hand. The woman's eyes fell to her wrist and she gushed. "That is a very beautiful bracelet you have by the way. Where'd you get it?"

"Thank you. I've had it all my life" Trina lifted her arm and wrapped her hand around her wrist, letting the rubies of the bracelet rest on her finger. "It's very special to me. Of all the jewelry I've ever had in my life, this is the one piece that always stays with me."

"She's very serious about that too," Sinjin remarked. "She will never remove it. You'd think it would get dirty or rust, but no, she manages to keep it clean all the time."

Courtney cleared her throat and called for attention, "Before we forget. Ed wanted us to give you this." She pulled a folded piece of paper from her pocket and handed it to Roy, who immediately opened it. As he read the note, he curled his finger over his lip and narrowed his gaze. Roy smirked, and with a huff, snapped his fingers and set fire to the paper. Trina watched in awe as the paper crumbled into ash. Excitement overwhelmed her and she pictured herself pulling the same trick.

"Fullmetal thinks he's going to give me orders?" Roy laughed. "I'm not going to do this because he suggested it, but it appears you three have no place to stay, and we should look after you. But I only have one guest room at my place."

"Two of you can stay with me," Riza suggested. Trina looked to Sinjin and Courtney, she bit her lip. She didn't want to part with them, but she knew it was only for a while. Not to mention, she wanted to learn flame alchemy now that she saw a part of it in work.

"Sinjin, you and Courtney need to stick together." Sinjin raised eyebrow and Courtney started to protest, wishing for Trina to be with Sinjin. Trina wanted the siblings to be together. "I'll be fine. Besides . . ." She looked to the pile of ash on the desk, and Roy followed her gaze. "I want to learn to do that."

"I don't know about teaching you everything. The basics are a maybe." Roy folded his arms and Riza nodded, appearing a bit uncertain. "I'm guessing you and Sinjin are an item?"

"We are very close."

"How close is very?"

Courtney stepped forward and rolled her eyes. "They're lovers but don't like talking about their relationship to outside people." Trina blushed while Roy simply cleared his throat.

"Okay then. Riza has a couple rooms that you two siblings can stay in. Is that all right, Riza?" Riza confirmed and Courtney thanked him. "Okay. Well, Trina, I can tell you what you'd like to know about alchemy if you're really that interested."

"You said the homunculi brought you here?" Riza's question was spoken with a concerned tone. Sinjin informed them about their run in with Lust and Envy. Riza's eyes widened for a split second and Roy shook his head. "If they're hunting you, it might not be wise to send you out in the city alone. It will be a while before we're off work. We don't leave until after eight."

"We'll stay here if it's not too much trouble?" Trina agreed with Riza, she didn't feel comfortable out there in the city with homunculi lurking about. "You guys know who the different homunculi are?"

"We know of them." Roy took a seat and swept the ashes into a trash bin beside his desk. "The Elrics have sent in some reports regarding them, among other things. Apparently there's six or seven of them. If they're after you, then Riza's right. It isn't safe to be out there alone."

"Sounds like a good deal to me." She looked to the paperwork on Roy's desk. "I'll just get back to reading and let you finish up your work. I'll be so quiet you won't even know I'm here."

"All right." As Trina sat down on the end of the couch next to the bookshelf, Courtney and Sinjin started making their way back over. Roy cleared his throat and pointed a pen towards the vase. "Sinjin, is it?"

"Yes sir?"

"Could you sit down there on the end and readjust the flowers in that vase for me? They're not as spread out as they should be."

"Okay…" Sinjin sat on the farthest end of the couch and began adjusting the flowers. As he did this, Courtney took a seat between Sinjin and Trina. Roy smiled subtly and returned to the papers on his desk.

"Thank you very much."

* * *

So what are your thoughts and observationis thus far?


	8. Questions Developing

Seeking Origins

Disclaimer: Don't own Victorious, or Fullmetal Alchemist

A/N:

* * *

Chapter 8 (Questions Develop)

Sinjin woke to find the office dimly lit. The only sound was Riza typing away at the typewriter at her desk. He stretched himself out and looked at the couch; the others were gone, which was a little concerning for him. He hadn't let his sister or Trina out of his sight since they got there. Riza looked towards him, she had a misty glaze over her eyes and a sad smile on her lips. "Ah you're awake, your sister's in the bathroom. It's about time to leave. Roy and Trina have already headed off. She wanted to say goodbye but didn't want to wake you."

"I'm surprised I fell asleep, but it has been a long day." More exhausting than long. He slept very little since they arrived-he was too busy studying and looking after Trina and Courtney after the attack by the homunculi. "You usually stay after everyone leaves?"

"Yes, I often have to finish filling out today's report, and so forth." Riza's fingers clacked on the keyboard for another few seconds at what was an incredibly fast pace. Sinjin sat up and lifted his eyebrows when she took her hands away from the typewriter. "I'm done now, so we can start heading out when your sister gets back." She grabbed her coat from the desk and pulled it over her arms. "So, you and Trina…you two are a couple?"

"Yes. We've been a couple for several years now."

They'd been dating since Trina turned sixteen, or at least, a few months after. Their first date was later that year after her junior year began. Dating didn't change much about the relationship they already had. It just became official to _them_.

They still did the same things together, but were open to more romantic ideals. Things like cuddling up beside the fireplace and kissing more often.

"You failed to mention it earlier."

"We just don't talk about it unless someone asks. Really, it's like this. If you bring up a relationship to people, they feel they can become self-proclaimed advisors. This way, we handle our own problems without outside people becoming involved in our issues. We can do things like set our own dates without people giving us a million suggestions. We know couples that people are always trying to either split up, or get together if they are on a break. Trina and I opt _not_ to be that couple. Our relationship is our own and we're closer for it."

"That's good to hear. And Trina has her own opinion and say in the relationship?"

"Of course, we respect each other." Riza smiled at the statement, which was unexpected. She closed a folder on her desk and cleared her throat.

"Good, it's always important that you respect one another. Have you argued in the past?" He raised an eyebrow as she met his eyes. Indeed he and Trina had argued in the past, but not often and not usually over anything deadly serious. They always made up.

"A couple times, yes. We usually make up quickly. Sometimes we'll argue, and eventually one of us just says something random and we start laughing. We try to patch things up right away if we can, and are sure never to end the day angry at each other. It isn't healthy. Even if it means not talking for a few minutes, we don't usually leave each other until the issue is resolved. Trina came up with that rule, actually." Riza appeared strangely content with that answer.

"That's nice, you two must be happy then. I imagine you make each other happy?"

"Very. I love her very much." He didn't want to outwardly say it, but he'd been trying to think of a way to propose to her. They had a lot on their plates, but regardless, this woman was the one he wanted to spend the rest of his life with. She was his primary reason for coming along with her. Yes, he wanted to find his dad, but mostly he wanted to help find her parents. "I would hope to make her happy, she deserves it. I know she wants to find my dad, and I won't give up looking for him, but I know there has to be things that are more important for her. Like her parents. A family. I know she wants a family. She's always gushing over those wedding magazines and children books."

Riza's eyebrows shot up and her lips curved into a slight grin. "So, are you saying a ring may be in the picture?" His cheeks went red and he cleared his throat to avoid any sign of nerves.

"If anything, a ring may be on the horizon. More than anything, I want to be a part of her life. Between you and me, of course."

"Oh yes, of course." Riza glanced to the door as Courtney entered the room. The girl looked between the two and Sinjin smiled as he turned to his sister, who appeared curious to what they'd been talking about. "Courtney, I'd say it's time to head out."

"Sure thing," Courtney said. "It's about time. Sinjin, you've been asleep for hours. I swear the second you sat down, you were out." He rubbed the back of his neck, chuckling lightly.

"That couch was comfortable."

When they made it to Riza's, Sinjin and Courtney were shown to their guest rooms. The rooms were next to each other. Sinjin stayed on the bed, gazing up at the ceiling in contemplation of the conversation with Riza. Honestly, it was the most open he'd been with anyone about his relationship with Trina. He wasn't sure why but he felt comfortable talking about it with her.

Where there was a knock on the door, he gave permission to enter, figuring it was his sister. The door slid open and Courtney walked in, gazing at him with concern and interest. He sat up when she sat beside him. "Hey Sinjin, I was wondering…back at the office, I overheard you and Riza talking before I came in."

"You did?" He wasn't surprised; it wouldn't be the first time Courtney eavesdropped on a conversation. He didn't mind usually, she was just being a little sister, but it did get annoying. "Exactly how much did you hear?"

"Enough to hear you're thinking of proposing." Courtney smiled at him and leaned her shoulder into him. "So you really want to be with Trina?"

"Yes." He only just started thinking of it, not more than a month ago. He knew without a doubt that if they ever managed to get through that gate, he would be going with her and he would remain at her side. "I'm not sure when the right time is, but I know it's got to happen. At least. . . I think I want to find her parents first."

"Sounds about right, I just want to make sure. I know she makes you happy. I love that. If you think she's the one for you, go for it, but don't wait too long, brother."

"I don't plan on waiting too long."

"I'm just surprised you brought it up, I thought you didn't like talking to people about it."

"It's not that, I just prefer to keep my private life private. So does Trina. But for some reason Miss Hawkeye seemed…okay. It almost felt necessary, while at the same time, I couldn't shake the feeling that someone was sizing me up." From the moment Roy and Riza entered the office, something felt off. "I wonder if those two have ever been together. I saw a picture of the Colonel on the fireplace as we passed by."

"You think they dated?"

"Possibility. Couldn't hurt to ask, but I don't want to intrude." He heard a shuffling noise and glanced at the door to see Riza standing there. Her arms were crossed and her eyebrows rose.

"You wouldn't be intruding," she stated. "We were together, but that was a long time ago." She stepped in and leaned against the wall next to a large framed portrait of a man with a scruffy beard. She nodded to the portrait and narrowed her eyes at it. "This is a painting of my father. He died a long time ago." Sinjin frowned and started to sympathize with her, but staring at the somewhat menacing portrait, he got a strange feeling that it wasn't exactly something to mourn. The way Riza was posturing and glaring at the portrait seemed to give sign to estrangement.

"You and your dad never got along, I take it?"

"He was never around, always taking his studies more seriously than me. Yet for some reason, he decided it was his right to tell me who I could be with. I found a man, fell in love, but my father didn't approve. So he threw the man out."

"I'm sorry to hear that. Was it the colonel?"

"Yes. He trained with my father. When he caught wind of our relationship, he cut ties and sent Roy away. That was after discovering we had a child together." Sinjin's heart stopped and his muscles started to tense. He opened his mouth to speak, but held back for uncertainty. Courtney turned her wide-eyed gaze to Riza and asked the question that was on both their minds.

"What happened to the child? Why aren't you two together?"

"My father killed our child." Riza pushed away from the wall with tears forming in her eyes. An overwhelming feeling of sorrow and anger filled the room, choking them. "Or at the very least, he had something to do with it. Someone killed him; the only thing left of my child was the pink blanket just inches from my father's hand. There were burn marks and ashes, as if he…" She choked up and put her hand to her chest. Sinjin got the picture. He was sick to his stomach, and unable to comprehend how someone could do such a heinous crime.

"I am terribly sorry. That must have been horrible to go through."

"That's why we're not together. We were angry, pointing fingers at each other and father. He became depressed and that was it. We met again during that war, and of course, we tried dating again. We've been on and off for a while. It's just with something like that, you don't forget…"

"Why tell us?"

"Because you asked. You told me you don't talk about your relationship with Trina unless someone asks. I thought I'd pay you the same respect." Sinjin turned his gaze to the portrait and scowled as nausea stabbed him and bile started to rise up. All he could picture was this man burning a young child alive.

"Then we come in talking about lost parents. I can't imagine how you must feel, but I hope we didn't spark any serious emotions." Riza smiled sadly and waved her hand in the air, dismissing the thought.

"No. It's just that today was an anniversary. Anyway, I'm glad you and Trina are happy with one another, and I want you to know, Roy and I will help you three out in any way we can. Just give us a little time, all right?" Riza looked to the portrait once more before turning her back and starting for the door. "I have a feeling he and I are going to need to have a talk pretty soon now."

* * *

What are your thoughts? I know it's taking a while, once a week update is kind of slow to me but my friend can only beta on particular days.


	9. Ghosts of the Past

Seeking Origins

Disclaimer: Don't own Victorious, or Fullmetal Alchemist

A/N:

* * *

Chapter 9 (Ghosts of the Past)

"Impossible. I thought . . . we thought. . ." Roy said as he looked through piles of files and photos all the while unaware that she stood at the doorway to his study. When he growled like an animal, and threw the files onto the ground when it wasn't what he wanted, she found herself caught between a desire to retreat and an urge to try to calm him.

After several minutes, he stopped and looked up. His face softened and his lips formed into a smile, however his kind expression could not mask the pain and confusion in his eyes. "Trina how is the guest room? Is everything okay?

"Yeah, everything's fine." She glanced to a photo on his desk and gestured at it. It was of a man with glasses and spiky brown hair. He held a young girl with sandy brown hair and a wide grin. "Who is that?" Roy looked to the photo and slouched as he reached for it.

"That's Maes Hughes. He was my best friend and closest confidante. He had a beautiful daughter who was the light of his life. Sometimes I'd get so jealous." His voice cracked then immediately returned to its deep and gruff tone. "He was murdered by that homunculus you mentioned. He didn't deserve it. He was just a man who loved his wife and daughter." She thought she saw a hint of mist forming in his eyes. She moved forward and studied the photo. Her heart went out to him when she heard him mutter, "Should have been me, not him."

"You don't have a family?" He lived in a large home, so she was stunned when they arrived and he was living on his own. "If you don't mind me asking, why not?" Her thoughts went back to what Havoc said earlier about asking either Roy or Riza about their past. The last thing she wanted to do was dredge up old wounds. "Sorry if I'm interfering." He stared at her for a few minutes before letting out a deep sigh.

"It's fine." He looked to the bracelet on her wrist and extended his hand. "Can I see that bracelet? I'm curious about something…" Trina was hesitant, but did not complain outwardly. As much as she didn't want to part with it, she felt like she could trust the man to give it back.

"Be careful. I got it from my mom."

"Your mom huh?" His facial features grew tense as he took the bracelet into his hand. He studied it, caressing the rubies with his fingers and eyeing the heart pendant and engraving. "You said your mom was from Amestris, right? Dante and the homunculi separated you from her?"

"Yeah, that's what I think anyway. It's important to me, but at the same time I want to find Sinjin's dad first." Roy's lips curved into a smile as he looked up from the bracelet.

"You'd put off a chance at finding your parents in order to find his father?"

"Yeah, and I know he'd do the same for me. He wants to anyway. He's been telling me all this time, he'd rather me find my parents first. Still, I feel like my parents are safe while his dad might be in more danger." Roy handed the bracelet back to her.

"It is a beautiful bracelet, finely crafted. Envy never saw it, right?"

"I don't believe so." Trina pushed the bracelet back on. She wondered why he sounded so perplexed, as if something wasn't sitting right with him. "Why do you ask?"

"No reason." Roy leaned back in his chair, moving his feet up onto the table. "Those homunculi each have their own powers and capability. Though we're not sure what Pride can do yet. Greed had something to do with body composition, Ed killed him."

"And the others?" She was glad there was one less homunculi to worry about, but six others was no easy trip. "Lust had those long nails." Roy took a deep breath and pressed his fingertips together.

"Right. Then there's Gluttony, Ed says he can't stop eating. Not much known about Wrath, besides his use of alchemy. Sloth has the capability of water, then there's Envy-" Roy clasped his hands together and hunched over the desk a moment. "The shape-shifter." Roy turned his gaze to the photo of Maes and his eyes narrowed further. "Envy can transform into anyone he knows the appearance of. He can also mimic clothing, or accessories, but he'd have to know everything about the accessory."

"Then we have to be careful around him. I think he and Lust know how I feel about Sinjin, they took advantage of that when we arrived…" Roy moved his feet back to the ground and leaned forward. His voice deepened as an angry look flashed before his eyes.

"What did they do to you?" Trina's brow furrowed as she sought to rid herself of the memory appearing in her mind.

"Lust tried to seduce him. Envy had me pinned, with his knee jabbing into my back. I-I couldn't get free, I could only watch. I was scared, and I don't do well with fear." Concern swept over Roy's face.

"You're okay now, though. You're all safe? I assume that's where Ed and Al found you?"

"Yes, they saved our lives. We didn't open the gate. I think Dante did. The homunculi said Dante wanted me alive.I know she's the one that put me through there too when I was a baby. I used to have these nightmares all the time." Tears welled in her eyes as she let the emotion out for the first time. She was scared of these creatures. She'd put on a tough front all this time, but now that she was essentially alone, she felt vulnerable and hated it. Granted Roy was there for her, and she felt oddly comfortable talking to him.

"You've had a stressful day. You're all right now." He took a step back and cleared his throat. "The homunculi are a threat, but we won't let anything happen to you or Sinjin and his sister. Though tell me, Sinjin, is he your-"

"My boyfriend. Usually we keep our relationship to ourselves. We've been dating since I was sixteen, but we've known each other since we were tots. I came through the gate as a baby. His dad was taken through." Roy's eyes widened for a second and he moved toward the door. Trina followed him out, curious to what his thoughts were.

"So when you say that you believe his dad is in more danger than your parents are…"

"If Dante and Envy were there when I was sent through, guess where his dad would have popped out."

"I see."

"He says there's not much of a chance his dad's alive and that we should focus on my parents, but I don't know. He's sacrificing his father for me."

"And you're sacrificing an opportunity to be with your parents for finding his father. I'd say both are admirable causes. It's clear you two love each other deeply if you're willing to do that. I just fail to see why you couldn't do both."

"I didn't want to overload you and your staff."

Roy chuckled softly and shook his head, as though dismissing the thought of overworking his staff. "So, this boy Sinjin . . . He makes you happy?"

"Yes. More than anything. I couldn't do all this without him. I'm strong enough on my own, but he makes it a little more bearable." As they passed into thekitchen, Trina felt her stomach growl. She looked to the nearby refrigerator and groaned. "Oh god, I haven't even eaten since we got here."

"I was about to fix some supper. How do you feel about steak?"

"Love it!"

"I had a couple slices marinating to be cooked for dinner tonight, so you're in luck. I was going to ask Riza to join me for supper, but you guys showed up and I didn't think to ask. Besides, today's not the best day for us." He opened the fridge and pulled out a tray with two slices of steak. Trina's mouth watered and she shook her head, ignoring her growing hunger.

"Sorry about that. We never meant to bring up anything bad."

"You're fine." A sparkle shone in his eyes for a second as he studied the steaks. His lips curled into a smirk. "You're interested in flame alchemy so maybe you'd like to see a trick?"

"Sure!" He snapped his fingers and fire appeared in a circle around the steaks, coming over them like a dome. She laughed at his proud smirk.

"The benefits of working with fire. I'm telling you, it would have made family barbeques all that more entertaining." Trina felt a surge of sorrow once more and she frowned at him, gazing as he stared at the flames as though he didn't realize what it was he said.

"Colonel, did you lose a family?" He frowned in response and shrugged his shoulders.

"Something like that. Things are a little confusing right now. I have the day off tomorrow. I could teach you the basics of alchemy. I could show you a couple things in regards to working with fire. It shouldn't be difficult for you to learn." There was just enough hesitancy in his voice in regards to actual flame alchemy to make her question whether or not she really wanted to work with it. Her years of martial arts seemed sufficient, as well as David having taken her to shooting ranges so she would know how to fire a gun when she went into the police academy.

"How do you know I'll be able to pick it up?"

"Shouldn't be a problem. Also, I don't know if you've ever noticed, but you've already likely had some experience with flame alchemy."

"I don't understand."

"Look at your bracelet." She raised an eyebrow and lifted the bracelet up. "You've noticed I'm sure. On the small metal beads in between each round ruby, there's a black dot." She'd always noticed the dots, but she stopped thinking about them in the last couple of years. She once took a magnifying glass to them and saw they were more circular than just simple dots, but that was before she ever figured anything out about transmutation circles.

"They're alchemy circles?"

"Yeah. They're tiny transmutation circles, crafted into them. They look to be transmutation circles for protection." The flames around the steaks started to diminish. Roy grabbed a carton of milk from the fridge. Trina studied the dots on the bracelets that he was talking about; she'd never known what they were before. Not to mention, each ruby had always had some sort of transparent figure inside. "From what I can tell, those rubies are also crafted from fire."

"So what are you saying? That someone made my bracelet from alchemy?"

"Yeah, like I said, it serves as a shield." What kind of shield, she wondered? There had been some strange happenings in the past, such as Beck being burnt when he grabbed at her, but she never thought anything of it. She just thought the boy was going nuts about nothing.

"So what is it? A barrier? It didn't do anything with Envy."

"Not surprised. The only reason it didn't do anything when Envy and Lust attacked was because you'd just arrived." As he poured the milk into a couple glasses, Trina lowered her arm and gave him a skeptical look.

"What do you mean?"

"It means you had parents who created a bracelet to serve as protection in case you were physically attacked. Meaning, if Envy had you pinned the way you were, that bracelet should have generated, as you say, a barrier from inside of you. It would have burnt him. It also means that one or both of your parents were alchemists, meaning alchemy should come natural to you." Trina let out an astonished gasp.

"Then why didn't it work when I was a baby? Obviously it didn't do anything."

"You probably weren't under physical duress until Dante put her hands on you, and by then, it was too late." His face scrunched and he grabbed the glass of milk. "That bitch's name keeps turning up in my files. I never got around to investigating those reports." He took a sip of the milk, and growled under his breath. Trina didn't know what he was angry at.

"I'm a little surprised you know so much about it."

"Well, I am an alchemist, so I know a protection circle when I see one. Speaking of alchemy, I have something else for you." He snapped his fingers and the flames went away on the steaks, both were cooked to opened a drawer and pulled out a small piece of chalk.

"What's that for?"

"It's for drawing an alchemy circle, so you can practice." Trina's eyebrows lifted as she reached for the chalk. She remembered Ed's words regarding transmuting objects and wondered how well they would apply to her.

"Ed said it was possible that I wouldn't need a transmutation circle since I saw the gate."

Trina drew the circle she remembered watching Ed draw then moved out of Roy's way. "Always a possibility, but you never know." Roy grabbed a small glass from the cabinet and placed it gently on the counter. "Try something." He set his hand down beside the glass. Trina flinched as the glass cracked and broke down into several pieces. "Try and construct this."

"Okay…I'm not sure…" She made her way over and set her hand down on the counter, staring at the fragments of glass as she recalled the things she had learned of alchemy and transmutation. She'd read the research Sinjin went through, and reading the alchemy book earlier was a great learning experience. "Here goes nothing." She focused intently on the glass and visualized what the glass looked like prior to deconstruction. In a flash of red light, the fragments moved together, reforming, but with many cracks in place.

"Not bad." He placed his hand back on the counter and generated some fire around the glass, removing the cracks. Trina was shocked to find that she was able to do anything. A fragmented looking glass was more than what she was expecting. "You've got some way to go, but at least you're learning control. That's the primary thing that bracelet is supposed to do, judging by the transmutation circles in it."

"What?"

"When you're a baby or you're new to alchemic capabilities, the powers are a bit out of whack and you won't be able to control them. That bracelet keeps them in check, so they don't just start going wild."

"Awesome!" Roy smiled as he removed some plates from the cabinets above the counter. "So we can start training tomorrow?"

"That's the plan. I'll start seeing what I can do about Sinjin's father. You realize there's not much to go on, right?"

"Right, but at least Sinjin has a photo of his dad with him. He's carried that picture for a long time."

"Okay, knowing his appearance will be good. We have looked for Ed and Al's father, Hoenheim, for quite some time. So, I don't know how our luck will turn out. " He frowned and appeared concerned. Trina let her eyes fall towards the steak, she didn't want to despair over it.

"Sinjin never once gave up on me throughout all our years knowing each other, and he was the only one really that believed I was from this world. I mean hell, he was were babies, sure, but he still knew. He still loved me, loves me, even when my coming through was what took his father away. So with that, I'm not about to give up on him."

"I understand. We will do our best to find him, Trina. I can promise that much."

"Thank you." She was grateful there was no question about finding John. "I've never known intuition to be wrong, and I don't believe I'm wrong now. That man is out there, as alive as my parents, I feel it." Roy nodded as he placed her steak onto the plate.

"If you believe that strongly, then I believe you. We'll look. I don't know where to start, but we will." He took a pause, glancing to a shaded photo on the countertop. Trina couldn't see too well the photo, she thought it was of a woman and a baby, but the area was too dark. "I might have an idea of where to start, but it's doubtful any clues would remain. Regardless, it's worth looking into."

"Whatever it takes."

* * *

Right now I have 20 chapters written (still need to write more) and only up to chapter 12 with my FMA friend. So as I said, this is going to go a little slower, but hopefully you're still enjoying it.


	10. The Mysterious Bracelet

Seeking Origins

Disclaimer: Don't own Victorious, or Fullmetal Alchemist

A/N:

* * *

Chapter 10 (The Mysterious Bracelet)

"So this is the shooting range?" Trina grinned as she and Roy stepped inside a long room with several booths that extended to round targets on the wall. Roy had his coat draped over his shoulder and Trina had a backpack draped over hers. "Thanks for bringing me out here. You know, my adoptive father taught me how to handle guns." She wanted to check out the shooting range for that purpose. "I wanted to go into law enforcement. Looks like the military is the closest thing."

"You want to join the military?" He looked concerned and started to smile as she strut toward the back target. "It's not all paperwork. It's a dangerous life. I'm not entirely sure the military is a good idea, but if you're into law enforcement, I would recommend the military police." She set her backpack on the ground and pulled out a Beretta M9, Roy was startled by it. "Where'd you get that?"

"My adoptive father. This is a gift from him."

"I see. Well, as I was saying, if you really want to join the military, I could recruit you. Just let me talk to my lieutenant first."

"Miss Hawkeye? Why would you have to talk to her first?" She pouted her lip for a moment, and then shrugged. It could be a couple thing. After all she and Sinjin ran everything by each other. "All right. I have a question for you, I've been wondering it since yesterday, are you and her together?"

"It's complicated." He stepped beside her and lifted a pair of ear muffs from the platform at her waist. She took the muffs and flashed an innocent grin, she almost fired without them as she had done so in the past at shooting ranges. "We're on and off. We're trying to work on a relationship, but there are things that make it difficult. One of which being a fraternization rules within the military. Not so much of an issue as other things though. Her grandfather, General Grumman, thinks I should 'make an honest woman out of her' or something."

"So he thinks you should marry? Well when you've dated someone long enough, you start expecting a ring after a while." She spoke from personal experience. Four to five years was a long time to date without any promise of a future together.

"Truth be told, I'm not sure it's what she wants." He pointed to the target, telling her to go ahead and shoot. She threw on her goggles, the muffs, and then steadied her aim onto the target. "All right, hold her steady. If your adoptive father-"

"David was his name."

"All right. David. If David taught you to shoot a gun, you know the kickback. Among other things." Out of the corner of her eyes she saw his features drop and a sad look come through his gaze. She fired off several shots into the target, striking close to the bullseye on a few occasions. She wasn't overly satisfied, since she only hit the bullseye twice, but it was her average at the range back home. Roy eyed the target with a proud expression. "Not bad shooting, almost as good as Riza. She's a sharpshooter."

She whistled, impressed but nervous at the same time. She was nowhere near that good, but with practice, she could be. "Awesome. Maybe I'll be able to match her one day. Just takes practice, right?"

"Yeah." She watched him lean his left shoulder against the wall and cross his feet. He looked towards the wall with a slightly distant expression. "If you don't mind, maybe you could tell me a little about David and your family back in the other world?"

"There's not much to say about them." She lowered her gun and walked toward him, meeting his gaze. "I wasn't really a valued member of the family."

"What do you mean?"

"My sister cared more about her friends than she did me. My mom, Holly, was distant and lethargic: actually went so far as to cheat on David. David was, somewhat decent as far as a father figure went. I mean, he had his moments, like teaching me to handle a gun, but there were times he would believe Tori's friends over me. They all knew I wasn't of that world, they knew I was adopted, and none of them went out of their way to make me a part of the family. Even if they had, I'd still want to know my real parents, but I wouldn't feel like it could be easy to leave them. To be honest, it's still not easy, but it sure as hell isn't as hard as it should be."

"I'm sorry, Trina."

"It's fine." She turned to the target and lifted the gun up, tightening her grip on the trigger. She fired off multiple shots, each with stunning precision and increased anger. "It wouldn't hurt as much if Tori didn't value her friends like they were gods. They're not gods. Definitely not Beck. Beck has no respect for women, he's manipulative and controlling."

"Beck?"

"He dates my sister's bitchy friend, Jade." She fired off another shot. "She turns him down. Then he gets drunk and comes over at Tori's invitation after I had my wisdom teeth removed." Her muscles tensed and her eyes narrowed as her next gunshot hit the side. "Tori runs off to sing somewhere and sticks me with Beck, Andre and Robbie." She scoffed and fired off another round of ammunition, her anger steadily increasing. Her body was jerking with each shot as her focus started to fade. Frustrated, she lowered the gun and started to breathe. "He tied me up and grabbed me, but that's about it."

"What do you mean?"

"He was trying to restrain me, so he tied me up. He grabbed me, but when he did, something happened to him and he started shouting about being burnt." She clicked the safety on her gun and turned to Roy. "If you'd like, I'm feeling like showing off some of my martial arts." Roy smiled calmly as Trina returned her gun to her backpack. "I'm a black belt, did I mention that?"

"No you didn't, but I'm curious. We'll head on out to the field."

"Sounds good to me." Trina picked up her pack and looked down to her bracelet as she followed him out the building. She'd examined it last night, thinking on what Roy told her about it. "So I was thinking, when you said something about this bracelet being protection. I think it might have worked, but how could alchemy work over there?"

"What do you mean? Also, alchemists were sent over here from there."

"I remember that. I guess I just can't understand why it would work since no one ever used alchemy since the whole separation."

"It might be a little difficult, but something so basic as protection alchemy isn't hard to use. You think it activated over there?"

"I don't know." She brandished her hand in the air. "When Beck grabbed me, he complained about being burnt." She followed Roy to a small patch of grass near the range and set her backpack down beside him. "You talk about protection alchemy, so I was wondering if it was the bracelet."

"Could be." Trina started to stretch her arms while thinking of what routine she could show him. She could also just show off her fighting ability without using any formations learned. She preferred a sparring partner, though. "I am sorry you went through a rough time with your sister's friends."

"The way I see it, they're not important to me, so much as they are to my sister." She moved into a fighting stance and warmed up by throwing two hard punches and following up with a strong right front kick. "Not my problem." Her eyes trailed to the bracelet on her arm. She felt a sense of uncertainty, "Still, I don't understand why it worked then, but I guess it's not really important to know."

"It did its job. Just remember, even though your cult leaders thought alchemists were gone and people stopped studying it, that doesn't mean it can't be performed. That bracelet contains a very powerful alchemy, so naturally it would work in a land where alchemy was once heavily practiced."

"But it didn't work when I came though the gate." When Envy had her pinned and forced her to watch as Lust attempted to kill Sinjin and Courtney, the bracelet didn't do anything. It was nothing more than simple jewelry.

She leaned to the left and kicked her right leg out to the side. She let her leg hover in the air for a second before letting out a shout and kicking multiple times. Her lips twisted into a smirk when she caught a glimpse of pride and astonishment in Roy's eyes. "Only warming up right now. Could use a sparring partner."

"Unfortunately I'm not well versed in martial arts. Riza may know a thing or two, though." He uncrossed his arms."As for the bracelet? I don't know. It could have been temporarily disabled. There's a lot of mystery that surrounds that gate, so I can't really explain it."

"Figures, I guess." She stood up straight and started to study her surroundings. It would be good to get a general feel of the area when practicing. She was starting to calm down from earlier but had yet to regain her focus.

"It's funny how much you know about that bracelet, almost like you had a hand in its creation." She was not completely blind to how Roy had been acting. It was confusing as of late. Many things he said, the way he said them and the way he acted sent off signals that there may be something she was missing. "Have you really never been a father?"

"Not entirely, no." His face fell once more and his shoulders lifted. "I had a child once, many years ago. My would-be father in law wasn't too approving and took the child and killed it."

"How do you know?"

His muscles tensed once more, an indicator of a memory Trina was probably overstepping bounds on. "We found the baby's blanket with scorch marks and a pile of ash. It was lying beside his body, with his hand clutching the corner." For the first time, she saw tears brimming at the edges of his eyes. This man, who gave off such a tough demeanor and a mysterious air of silence, was crying? "Riza and I split up over it. We tried to get back together over the years, but every damn time the anniversary comes around, we split up again. That baby meant the world to us. Riza was ready to be a mom and I was going to be a father with a happy child." He swept his thumb across his cheek and let out one mournful chuckle. "I'd probably be just like Maes. Showing off pictures of my family to everyone I came across, gushing on and on, but those days are just dreams.

Every day, all I can see is walking up to that man's body with other officers, seeing him holding the blanket that belonged to my child, and realizing that I had to tell Riza they were gone. No father should have to go through that."

"You're right." She turned to him, tearing up over the pain in his voice and the level of anger he had in him. Trina hugged him in an attempt to comfort and console. "I'm sorry you lost your baby. You and Riza both. I really am." She felt his muscles relax and smiled as he let out an exasperated sigh.

"All these years that's all I can see and everyday I question why I wasn't there. Or what if I'd been there or if I'd gotten there in time. Could I have stopped the madman from killing my child like a father should? That's what angers me most about your adoptive father. A man that has a chance to love a child, to be a proper father, ruins it when there are men that would kill for the chance." Trina frowned, struggling to think of something to say to make him feel better. She closed her eyes and shook her head.

"It's difficult to go through something like that. I've never had to deal with losing a child, of course, but I know how it feels to want to go back and change something that happened. All I can say is I'm sure somewhere out there your baby is safe, protected, and happy." Roy gave her a skeptical look, followed by a light chuckle. She put her hands to her hips. "What? Did I say something wrong?"

"No, it's not that." He smiled and shook his head. "Thank you though." He looked up to the sky. "It would be nice to be a father, to get that chance again. Instead, we were robbed of it. I mean, when Fullmetal came along, we started doing better. It felt almost as if we were looking after someone." A heavy sigh escaped his lips and his eyes narrowed. "Wishful thinking, I guess."

"Hey, you never know, maybe you will get the chance to be a father again someday," Trina said. It was best to be optimistic, or hell, bubbly if she had to be. If she could make this guy smile, then she felt like things could work out. She didn't know why she cared about it so much, but for some reason she could picture Roy and Riza happy instead of dwelling on a dead child. "Tell you what. We've been talking too much, and I want to start training. I want to build up on this alchemy. I know I won't be proficient at first, but I'm sure I'll get better. After all, I've got a good instructor, right?"

Roy smirked confidently and tugged on his jacket. "None better."

She laughed at the size of his ego. "Yeah see, I got a bit of an ego myself. We'll get along just fine."

* * *

So a little more info. Yeah I know this tale's going slowly, but never fear, we're getting through it.


	11. Finding Trina

Seeking Origins

Disclaimer: Don't own Victorious, or Fullmetal Alchemist

A/N:

* * *

Chapter 11 (Finding Trina)

Tori Vega scratched her head as she sat in what was once Sinjin's study. Her hands trembled and her muscles tensed. "I don't understand. What is all of this?" Whatever it was that Sinjin and Trina had been studying, this alchemy was the secret to what they'd gone through. The best lead they had was a man by the name of Professor H, but he was far from Los Angeles. Her friends told her it was pointless, and that there was surely no way to open the gate that appeared. "I will find a way."

After Trina left, their dad did what she requested and was busy removing everything from Sinjin's apartment. She kept anything that had to do with alchemy or those strange symbols she saw when the gate appeared.

"You're wrong, Trina…" She slowly closed the book and looked to the framed photo sitting on Sinjin's desk. Tears welled up in her eyes as she gently lifted the photo and gazed with a sad smile.

It was a picture of Trina when she was truly happy, sitting in a field of flowers and laughing at the camera with a wide smile that Tori had not often seen on her sister's face. It was like gazing at a completely different person.

Unlike her friends, Tori knew of her sister's relationship with Sinjin. She never asked about it though, and never realized how deep their affection for one another was. Sinjin gave up his entire life in this world to leave with Trina, and for what? To find her real parents.

She always figured David and Holly had been those, but reflecting over recent years, she realized they weren't the parents to Trina that they could have been. Not surprisingly, Courtney went as well. Always the sister she was never able to be. Even though Trina said she and her friends weren't the reason for her going away, she didn't want to believe it. Maybe Trina was correct, but at the same time, there had to be some deep feeling of regret that would have sent Trina into such certainty.

As she set the picture down, she looked up to another framed photo on the wall, this time a professionally done picture. It was one of those typical family type photos with Sinjin, Trina, and Courtney. Once more, Trina had that broad smile. "Why did I never see this side of her?" It seemed more a matter of her not being interested in this part of Trina's life. "I wonder what my friends would say to all this?"

She didn't feel any better when she found Sinjin's computer. He'd left his computer on so she helped herself to meddling. It wasn't as if he'd care at this had been an exchange back and forth between the couple; Trina was asking about a prior roommate that left. She was asking him if he would consider her as a roommate. That she'd be there for him and for Courtney if he needed. Trina flipped to the browser that was left open. Whoever was looking at it left a page up from a jewelry store with several various engagement rings.

"I do want to be a part of your life, Trina. You're wrong about that. I promise you're wrong."

Back at the house, Tori had her laptop and was on the couch, sifting through her father's security footage. Her friends were sitting around the living room with her, Beck and Jade together as always beside her. "You didn't tell us your dad had security cameras in the house," Jade said. Beck looked over with arched eyebrows while Andre moved a closed hand beneath his chin.

"It's mainly the living room," Tori remarked, narrowing her eyes. "He's been a police officer for years, at his rank he's not about to have a house without security."

"It works too," David remarked from the stairs. He walked down in a red bathrobe. Tori looked over her shoulder, grinning widely despite the man's forlorn expression. He wasn't doing well in his health. He'd become sicker, more lethargic, and always had ashen skin with tired eyes. It was no wonder Trina asked her to stay behind and look after him. "Haven't had to look at it for a while since we've had no issues, but I check it every month or so to see if it's working."

"So you don't view it all the time?" Andre asked. Tori shook her head and David walked up behind the couch. There was never any reason to view the footage all the time, nobody ever broke in and nothing remained changed. "You should."

"Well right now all I'm interested in is the footage from that gate opening up. I want to see a slow motion play of it to see if there's anything that I can use. I have to find out where my sister is."

"You never cared about her before," Cat remarked. Tori lifted her head, groaning loudly as the friends all looked to Cat, who simply shrugged. "I'm telling the truth. You've always put her down, how are we supposed to know if you care about her? How was she supposed to know?"

"I realize that now, Cat. Why do you think I'm trying to get her back? Huh? She left because of me." True she left because of her parents, but Tori still felt as if she was the one that pushed Trina to go by neglecting her.

"She didn't leave because of you," Andre muttered. Tori started to growl, irritated that her friends all seemed so lackluster on this issue. "She told you she would've wanted to look for her parents anyway. The way we treated her, Beck especially, made it easier for her to leave." Tori raised an eyebrow and Jade protested, calling Andre an asshole for declaring Beck a big reason. Beck did not attempt to defend himself. "In fact Tori, I have to confess something. We're not innocent. We treated Trina poorly and disrespected your family, maybe we pushed her away, and I'm sorry for it."

Tori scrunched her face and lifted her fingertips from the keyboard, annoyed to be going over this again. "I already told you guys I don't care, okay? I'm over it. We're done. I know you guys screwed up, you admitted you messed up, so I'm not holding it against you."

"No, I know that. See that's the thing." Andre moved his foot back to the ground and leaned forward. Tori's hands fell to the sides of her legs and she leaned her head back on the couch, groaning with each passing second that went without her researching and getting closer to Trina. "A remorseful person will look you in the eye and when they say 'I'm sorry I fucked up', they'll mean it. A guilty person without true remorse won't look you in the eye and they'll use deflective words and even point out someone else when they say it." Andre shook his head, his dreads flew over his angry face and a slight growl entered his voice. "They'll say stuff like 'Yeah man, I told Andre not to do this', or 'I chastised her when she did that'."

"What are you going on about, Andre?"

"They never reference themselves because they're too fucking narcissistic and vain to acknowledge they played major blame." Robbie shifted in his seat while Beck continued to stare with a cool, nonchalant expression at Andre. "If you want to accuse all of us for being the reason Trina left, Cat's only here by association, Robbie association, and I acknowledge that I did some stupid things. But if you really want to place blame, then the one responsible is my best friend sitting beside you." He pointed to Beck, and Tori slowly looked over while Jade shot him a suspicious look. Beck lifted his hands up and sighed.

"Andre yeah, we're all responsible for treating Trina badly. I know. Jade did a lot of the cussing her out and I allowed it, I know. What was I supposed to do? I can't tell my girlfriend not to verbally abuse a girl, she'll get jealous." Jade narrowed her eyes and shot Beck an angry glare.

"I'm sure I wouldn't have cared if you said I was going too far, Beck. I know I've had to tell you when you crossed the far point. You don't seem to mind."

Tori rolled her eyes and shot her hands into the air, aggravated that this whole blame game was still going on. "Enough guys! I don't care. I don't know why I'm even involving you when none of you bothered to give Trina a time of day. What do you care if she's gone? I'm not going to stop looking, and I'm not looking for her because you guys messed up. I'm looking for her because I want to find herand Iwant to be a part of her life. I mean if she and Sinjin get married, I want to know."

"What?" Silence filled the room and Tori froze, realizing her mistake. Did it matter if they knew? They would have found out anyway. All eyes were on her now, confused and perplexed by her words.

"They've been dating for years now. I think one of them was looking at engagement rings, and throwing around the idea of moving in with each other. They were in love, you guys." The friends exchanged astonished looks while Andre dropped his head and chuckled.

"Explains why Sinjin beat the shit out of Beck that day." Beck shot Andre a glare and folded his arms over his chest.

"Which you sat and watched, Andre." Andre slowly clicked his jaw as his lips separated.

"Okay enough of this. Vega, give me that thing!" Andre grabbed the laptop off. They watched for several minutes until he returned the laptop to her, having separated the video files with two dates. "Those two right there. Play the tapes Vega."

"Ugh fine, I don't get why you're bothering with this." She clicked the first date and the video opened up with her leaving the house to Beck, Andre, and Robbie while Trina was going nuts over the wisdom teeth surgery. "What is this? Why are you showing me this?"

"Remember you left after having to tie her down? We untied her, and then were forced to tie her back up."

"You tied her up again?"

"She started using her martial arts and everything. Got to say, Beck wasn't too happy with that."

Jade raised an eyebrow as the video played. Tori remembered this as the time they went to the karaoke place. "I remember that day," Jade muttered. "Beck was pressuring me earlier that morning into sleeping with him and I said no. I'm a lot of things, but I don't just sleep around." She remembered that too, Jade told her all about it later on that night. "He started letting those girls at the karaoke place flirt with him, then you guys called. I don't remember what was going on after that."

"What was going on?" Andre chuckled and pointed to the video once more, "What happened was you turned Beck down and he vented his frustrations out onto Trina." Tori's heart stopped and Jade's jaw dropped as Beck leaned off to the right, sighing heavily. All eyes focused on the screen as the three men untied Trina and she went ballistic from the pain. After several minutes, in the video, the anger was clear on Beck's face.

In the video, Beck had thrown Trina on the couch after she'd consistently dodged his attempt to bring her the medicine. Her jaw struck the arm of the couch, so she grabbed her face in pain. It was then that Beck cussed her out and began to tie her up. He moved her to the counter while Robbie and Andre watched the wild look in his eyes. Beck claimed he wanted to put her in his place and when he reached for her, grabbing her belt, he pulled away immediately, screaming about something burning his hand.

It was in that moment that Andre signaled Robbie to tackle him to the ground, both men disgusted with Beck's actions and words. Andre punched him hard in the jaw while Robbie answered a text message from Tori, declaring that she was on her way. Robbie untied Trina and she looked ready to attack him, but instead, moved for the couch.

Tori cupped her hand over her mouth, screaming into it as David firmly grasped Beck's shoulder. Jade was staring wide-eyed at the screen with a disgusted expression slowly growing over her face. Trina never told them about this, but why would she? Tori knew all too well that they, David included, wouldn't have believed her.

The second video was almost as bad, but this one upset David even more because it heavily involved him. The three guys were over, fighting over Trina. She got in the middle of them, trying to get them to stop fighting, then Beck grabbed her in order to restrain her. He let her go, once again feeling something burning him, then dove for the couch once Trina called for David.

When he came down, Beck led the others in a story about how they were doing some stupid puppet intervention with Trina. She tried explaining what really went down, but David believed them. At that point, she stormed out the door, possibly going to Sinjin.

"You see," Andre started, "If there's a reason for her leaving other than those parents of hers. The reason is right there. Nobody gave a shit about her." Jade moved her hand to her chest and Beck closed his eyes, wincing as Tori slowly closed the video and calmly moved back to the most recent dates.

"That bracelet," she whispered. "In both videos that bracelet was _glowing_. Both times, it looked like it was causing Trina to glow."

"She wasn't glowing, Tori…"

"Maybe not in person. But on the video, it looked like she was made of fire. It was made by one of her parents. Probably an alchemist. Protection alchemy that works on this side of that gate. Thank you Andre. I think I might have a lead." It wasn't what he was trying to show her, sure, but now she had a lead whether or not she knew what to look for. But first, certain people had to be dealt with.

She slowly closed her laptop as Beck started to put his arm around Jade. Jade immediately shoved him away, declaring their relationship over. Tori wouldn't blame her. She knew Jade wasn't at fault. She was pissed that Beck would put his hands on her sister. Even if he was drunk and didn't know what he was doing, that was no excuse.

Her body stiffened and she took deep breaths to retain some semblance of calm. Her voice deepened and continued to descend as she spoke. "Beck." He looked up from the floor, having been pushed there by Jade.

Tori swallowed the saliva forming in her mouth as her throat tensed and she was unsure of whether any more words would come. She inhaled and when her throat relaxed, said, "Get out of my house. If I see you ever again, I'll rip you limb from limb." She opened her eyes but they didn't extend beyond narrow slits that spewed visual venom. "If you don't think I will, I can guarantee my dad won't hesitate.

"Okay, okay I'm going." Beck stood up and dusted his clothes off with a heavy sigh. "I really am sorry, okay? I mean it too. I was drunk. I was being stupid. I did some things that I'm not proud of. It was wrong, and I'm-"

"Stuff it!" Her hand flew to the door and her voice rose to fiery levels. "Get the fuck out of my house!" Beck wasted no time scrambling for the door. The other friends all stared at Tori with stunned, frightened expressions. Her body was rigid and her jaw tight. She carefully opened the laptop back up, took a deep breath, and set her fingertips back on the keyboard. "Okay. Time to look at that gate." She cracked her neck to the right, flinching as her bones made a crunching noise. She rubbed her neck and returned to the computer. "She grabbed her shoulder, so that time it was the mark on her shoulder that went off."

"Tori?" Andre reached over to pat her shoulder, but before he could touch her, she fixated her glare onto him. She did not want to be touched. He withdrew his hand and placed it gently in his lap. "I'm sorry Tori. Really sorry."

"It's fine. Now back to topic. Trina went through that gate, something opened it, and I'm going to find out how to do it from here. Even if it's the last thing I do."

"You saw their research," Jade whispered while staring at the floor with a traumatized look. "They must have studied years."

"Then I'll study their research and do everything I can to figure anything else out. It looks similar to Wiccan, so that should be up your alley, right Jade?"

"What?" Jade gasped and quickly looked to Tori. "You think I-"

"I've seen you reading stuff that has to deal with the Wiccan religion. Whether you practice it or not, you know something of it, right?" Jade paused and quickly looked back to her feet, tears were welling up in her eyes as she hugged her knees.

"Y-Yeah. I know a little about it. I can help. I'm not sure how well, but I'll try."

"Thank you. It means a lot to me that you guys would help. I'm glad I'm not alone in this." Technically, she would be forcing them to help, but after what she'd seen, she didn't care.

"No offense, Vega, but we have a bit of a mess to deal with right now."

"I know. I'm angry and hurt, but Trina's more important." She felt betrayed, to be honest. She placed her trust in someone, and they abused it. "I won't make the same mistake again. I won't be naïve. If there's one thing Trina's taught me, it's that being naïve never gets you anywhere."

* * *

So what are your thoughts? Looks like they're done with Beck.


	12. Match Made in Heaven

Seeking Origins

Disclaimer: Don't own Victorious, or Fullmetal Alchemist

A/N:

* * *

Chapter 12 (Match Made in Heaven)

Trina curled her hands on the silver dress she wore as Roy parked the car next to a large building. She didn't know why she had to get dressed in such a formal gown, Roy said it was something Riza told him to do, and now they were at this club in the middle of the city.

Once parked, she stepped out of the car and pulled the dress down as it had gone up her legs a bit. The silk dress was long and in a neat circle around her legs, rather than the large dresses with the appearance of a bell. The dress was sleeveless,had lace lining, and an infinity sign on her chest just beneath the collar. The dress had a zipper up the back that stopped at the collar. Her hair was up in a bun, with two hair clips holding it in place.

She was thrilled when she saw Sinjin waiting at the door, dressed in hair was curlier than usual and had a neat trim that stopped just at the jaw line. He was wearing contacts but she no doubt his glasses were somewhere on him.

"Sinjin? What is all this?" She made her way towards him and glanced down at her dress. "A surprise date? You know I don't like dresses, right?"

"Well, you know how you wanted to go for a dance. I asked Riza if she could get us into the military ball, but they couldn't, so Colonel Mustang got us into this dance club here.." He extended an elbow and she graciously wrapped her arm around his. She was stunned that he'd think to do this for her, but she was happy. Over her shoulder, she saw Riza walking up to Roy. The woman was smiling at her, looking at the point of tears. "So unfortunately it's still formal wear here, you have to wear a dress." She rolled her eyes and stifled a laugh.

"Okay. I'll put up with it then, for tonight." She held her breath and walked in place with him. Once inside, she released a gasp as she saw an enormous room with brilliant lights decorating the facility. There was a food table at the far end, a stage on the right with some musicians playing, and a dance floor in the center where several couples were waltzing. Her heart skipped a beat and her hand rose up to her lips. "Sinjin what-"

"You said you wanted to go to have a chance to dance, remember? Since we didn't go to our own proms? Did you think I'd forget? Since when have I ever let you down?"

"Don't ask questions you don't want answers to." A coy smirk spread on her face while Sinjin merely laughed. His laughter enriched her, filling her with bliss and excitement. She didn't realize Sinjin would take her comment about the dance seriously.

"Well…" Sinjin turned towards her, took her hands and started walking backwards towards the dance floor. Her eyes remained glued with his as she followed faithfully, trusting him not to guide them into some random person. "I may be considered a trainee." and stepped closer to him once they made it to the dance floor with the rest of the couples.

"Trainee? You mean like a recruit?" She locked her fingers with his and set her hand to his shoulder. "You're joining the military here?" It was a surprising career change for him.

"I'm thinking about it anyway. They need some teachers in the military, so I could go that route. The thing is that I can't teach history here. It's obviously not the history I've been learning. Also, the lieutenant is teaching me some things about combat and shooting."

Trina pulled her head back and the couple gazed into each other's eyes. She was happy to hear he wanted to try to join the military, but at the same time was concerned that he was changing his plans. Though it sounded like he still wanted to teach something. "And why would you want to do that? What would you teach, if not history?"

"I'm not sure, but it seems like I know enough about alchemy through my research. If anything, I know about the ancient stuff, so there is that. As for combat techniques and handling a weapon." He smirked at her. "I have two girls in my life that mean more than anything, here in the middle of some dangerous territory. You think I'm just going to sit around while some homunculi threat is out there trying to steal you away for reasons we don't know?" She let out a brisk chuckle and rested her head against his chest just beneath his chin.

"No you're right, that doesn't sound like something you'd be willing to do. Even if it's not history, at least you can teach something. Maybe teach basic alchemy principles to new State Alchemists. Speaking of which, I have something to say also." She closed her eyes, purring at the rumbling inside his chest and the warm, soft pounding of his heartbeat. "I'm thinking of joining the military myself, to get into the military police."

"Amazing! I say go for it, if that's what you want to do. I support you."

"And I support your decision, if it makes you happy." She lifted her head up to him and leaned her head to the right. "It would make you happy, I hope?"

"Well let's see. I will be able to use a weapon, whether gun or sword, be able to fight next to the love of my life, and protect my baby sister." He leaned forward, placing a tender kiss upon her lips. She closed her eyes and leaned into it. When he pulled back, her eyes hung on his lips for a second before lifting up to his loving gaze. "Nothing would make me happier."

"I love you."

"I love you too." He raised his hand to her cheek and caressed it gently before taking a fallen strand of her hair between his forefingers and tucking it neatly over her hair. "You look stunning tonight, beautiful, incredible. I was thinking, it's been a while since we've been on a real date, hasn't it?"

"A little bit, yeah. I don't know where any places are around here. Unfortunately, the colonel and lieutenant don't want us going out and about on our own right now."

"They are being a bit protective, but with Dante and the homunculi out there, I can imagine why they would be." He glanced past her and chuckled once. "By the way, take a look behind you."

"Hmm?" She glanced over her shoulder, grinning when she saw Roy and Riza dancing arm in arm nearby. Roy looked so focused on Riza, and the tears in her eyes remained still. "Aw, I'm happy to see them working things out. Roy told me last night they try to date but every time the anniversary of their baby's death comes around, they break up again. Maybe this time is different. Though I'm not sure what's different about it."

"I don't know, but they look good together."

"Yeah. By the way, where's your sister?"

"At the punch bowl." He turned, guiding her around. She glanced over his shoulder and saw Courtney with a cup in her hand and chatting up a handsome man around her age. She was wearing a sandy brown dress similar to Trina's, but with a v-neck collar and a low back. Her hair covered up the skin and blended nicely with the dress. "And no, I haven't let her out of my sight yet." A light laugh escaped her lips and she covered her mouth, trying to hide her amusement at Sinjin's protectiveness. He closed his eyes as his smirk increased.

"You let your sister have fun, okay? Besides, she's chatting up a handsome looking officer. It's good if she meets someone."

"Eh. I suppose." Trina playfully smacked his arm and shook her head. He had a knack for interrogating every single guy that Courtney brought home in the past, so she had to expect he'd do the same even now.

"She's a big girl, she can handle herself and make her decisions."

"Oh I'm fine with her making decisions and handling herself, but I still want to talk to any guy she decides to date." She laughed again and reached up, kissing his jaw. "The lieutenant says there's a girl at the library that she might like making friends with. She could get a job there. We've been trying to figure out what she can do in town. Oddly enough, we passed a flower shop and Courtney went nuts."

"Maybe she could work there." Flowers were her second love, after all. "Unless there's a research center for insects, I'm not sure what else she could do that she really enjoys. I can see you trying to get into the military, I know I'm going that direction, but Courtney is sweet, loving, gentle, and carefree. It wouldn't make sense for her to harden herself by going into that life."

"Yeah that's not something I want for her, but in the end, she'll do what she wants to." He smirked once more and glanced into Trina's eyes. "Hell, maybe she could start a matchmaking business."

"Matchmaking? Are you serious?"

"She's got a knack for it, I think." He kissed her forehead and glanced to the other couples. "Oh, hold on a second."

"Wha-" She let out a loud yelp as he dipped her, along with the rest of the couples. When he pulled her back up, she couldn't stop her nervous laughter. She moved in closer, holding her face just inches from his. She took a deep breath and turned her eyes towards his. His cool breath chilled her hot cheeks while her warm blood raced towards her skin to fight against the sensation. "Warn me next time."

"I'll consider it." He laughed deeply and Trina shook her head, becoming entranced with him. As they swayed once more with the music, she let her mind wander. Her eyes dropped down and Sinjin hummed curiously. "Something wrong?"

"No. Just…thinking about our sisters. I'm glad Courtney's here with us." Sinjin picked up on her thoughts as she began to wonder what Tori was up to.

"You miss Tori?"

"I've been thinking about her and about David lately. Not much, but I guess I do miss her a little bit. One day I want to start a family. " She pulled her head back and let her eyes dip down for a moment as she thought back on Tori. "I mean sure they were forgetful and treated me like I wasn't really a part of the family, but you've always been right. She was still my sister even if she didn't act like it. I still envisioned myself getting married, starting a family, and having Tori be right there holding her niece or nephew. I know she'd spoil the children to death. I just…I knew when I stepped through that gate what I was giving up, and no matter how poorly the treated me it was still somewhat difficult to leave them behind. There's no way to go back there, I know that, and then I worry. What if we came all this way, only to find out we were too late? What if we gave up our lives for nothing, Sinjin?"

His chest expanded and his eyes lifted up in contemplation. She knew she was asking too many questions for which there was no answer. They just had to have faith. She hadn't thought about the fact that Ed and the colonel had been searching for Hohenheim for years now, and the thought of finding Sinjin's dad or her parents any faster was worrisome.

"The best thing I can think to say is—" A reassuring look fell over his face and his warm gaze brought some comfort to her, "—if it all comes crashing down, if it is too late…the important thing is we have Courtney. We have each other."

"Yeah, that matters." There wasn't any place she'd rather be than with him. If everything was in vain and all their searching hopeless, she didn't care as long as he was by her side. "One last thing. Where did you learn to dance like this?"

"My sister and the lieutenant. Any other questions? Requests?"

"Just silence, I guess. Silence, and keep holding me. Don't want the night to end."

"Makes up for the missed proms?"

His embrace tightened around her waist, and her smile grew. Everything around them seemed to fade away as they danced their way into their own quiet world. This was a moment she dreamt of and now it was real.

"Definitely."

* * *

Well what are your thoughts?


	13. Faith

Seeking Origins

Disclaimer: Don't own Victorious, or Fullmetal Alchemist

A/N:

* * *

Chapter 13 (Faith)

Trina made her way to the local flower shop with Courtney, Riza was with the two while Roy was helping Sinjin with something down the street. They hadn't spent a whole lot of time with the other person, and Trina wanted to get to know the Lieutenant Hawkeye a little more. They also wanted to bring Courtney here to try to find a job.

"Just think!" Courtney gushed as the three women entered the flower shop. "If I work here, I might be able to give discounts to my big brother whenever he decides to buy you a bouquet of roses." Trina rolled her eyes and smiled at the comment, she wasn't a big flower type of woman, though the sentiment was still the same value for her. "I'm not as into books or research as Sinjin, so I'm not too keen on the idea of working in a library. It just seems so isolating, I think."

"Never looked at it that way before," Riza said. Trina nodded at the woman and studied her posture as they stood near an aisle. Her legs were spread apart, her shoulders flat and strong, rather than slouched. "Trina, what kind of flowers do you like? Like you said, I'm not much of a flower person either, but I love hibiscus."

"I guess Hibiscus is a favorite, it's beautiful." She looked for a worker nearby and motioned towards a woman at the front desk. "That's Grace, right? Roy said he knew someone that worked here and might be able to get Courtney a job." Riza turned and gave a subtle nod.

"I think that's her. Roy buys flowers here all the time." They walked over to the desk where the woman greeted them with a friendly smile.

"Hello, I'm Grace, how can I help you?" Grace looked over to Courtney, who was busy studying one of the floral bouquets. "Your friend seems very fond of the shop." Courtney looked over her shoulder, hearing the woman.

"Oh I am." Courtney moved over to the group. "I'm Courtney. Colonel Mustang said you might hire me. I love flowers."

"Well, I can't just hire you on the spot because you love flowers, you know." Trina and Riza both smirked as Courtney started to shy away. Trina half expected Courtney not to know what to do or say in this type of situation, the girl never actually applied for a job before this. As for this particular location, Trina wasn't entirely sure if the process of getting a job was the same way as in America or not.

"It's not that. We'd like to know if you have an application form," Trina interrupted. "Maybe even a training position?" She stepped behind Courtney and patted the girl's shoulders. "She really knows her stuff." Grace rubbed her chin and studied Courtney.

"Well, have you worked anywhere before?" Courtney looked back at Trina who shook her head. Even if she had work experience, it probably wouldn't be valid in this country either. "Judging by that, I'm guessing you have no experience. I do have a form you can fill out. I'm also almost done for the day, so if you'd like to stay and talk with me a while, I would like to see what you know."

Courtney brightened up. "I'd appreciate that very much." It wasn't a guarantee, but it was definitely a start. Trina took a step away from Courtney and motioned Riza over.

"That went well, I suppose?" Riza looked over to Courtney, who took a paper from Grace and walked over to the table. "I guess she'll be a while?"

"Yeah probably," Trina looked around the shop while speaking under her breath, "Let's go wait for her outside." She wanted to talk to Riza a bit more, so this was a good opportunity to really get to know the woman. "I hope Courtney gets a job here. Seems like a nice place." They walked out of the shop and took a seat at one of the tables situated in the town square.

"Looks like it's just the two of us." Trina studied Riza, noting her position. Riza was tapping her fingers on the table and looking away somewhat nervously. The woman looked back to Trina and frowned. "I'm not really sure what to talk about. I'm sorry if I seem out of place here."

"It's fine." She felt a little lost herself, but that was understandable considering the last few days. "Sometimes silence is better. Even without talking, you can sort of get to know a person. Body language. I learned that at the academy."

"Academy?"

"Police academy at the local community college. My adoptive dad taught me a few things too. He's the Assistant Chief back home. Been working with the police for about thirty years now."

"Impressive. You wanted to be an officer like him?"

"A lot of it was inspiration from him, I guess."

"Sounds like he was good to you." Riza smiled.

"He had his moments."

"Well, he was a father, one way or another." Trina chuckled and leaned against her curled hand. She looked up to the sky and exhaled softly as she thought back to David. She did miss the man, just as she missed her sister, despite the neglect.

"As long as he took care of you, that's what's important."

"Yeah."

"I wonder if Roy's done with your boyfriend yet…"

"Who knows?" She lifted her head up and straightened her back. "So…you and the Colonel." Riza quickly glanced over to her with arched brows and a nervous glimpse in her eyes. "You've made it past the anniversary of your loss? He told me about it." She frowned and turned her gaze towards a building across the street.

"I suppose so. It's complicated. I mean we're every bit as in love as you and your boyfriend appear to be, we've just never been able to make the step we need to take. It's hard to explain."

"I think I can understand. I mean tragedy or trauma can make or break a relationship. And surely you can be strong together, but things like the loss of a child can definitely make it hard to focus on a relationship of any kind."

Riza smiled sadly. "Roy has lost a lot and he's lived through a lot. He's a remarkable and strong man who could put his entire world on hold for someone. He could put his all into any relationship he has. I've stood beside him all these years because I love him. But he's never been able to move beyond the lives that he's been unable to save. That includes not only our child but also his best friend. We'll go on strong, but when the anniversary of our loss comes around, he's the one that can't handle it. He says it's too much pressure, too much to endure, and he calls us off. I give him some time to recover from the pain he relives, and then we start trying to make our relationship work. This year he has been remarkably stronger. Actually, it's been a few years since we've ever really been 'off'."

"I see. So what's holding you guys back now?"

"The homunculi. Dante. Even that killer, Scar. It's not just Roy. I'm terrified of starting a family with all these killers out there. He's proposed a couple times already."

Trina's heart leapt and she became excited for the couple, but sad at the same time realizing they weren't actually married. "So? Why have you not said yes?"

"I don't want to marry him and lose him. I don't want another loss to happen that makes him think he can't handle himself or I can't handle myself."

"You just have to have faith, I guess. I mean, I have faith that things will work out with Sinjin and me. Assuming we ever get married." She leaned back and let her face fall flat.

"Well you two are fairly young."

"Yeah, but we've been together long enough, and in reality, both of us have dated other people." She took a deep breath and shrugged her shoulders. "I think he was just waiting for college to finish up or something. Not that it matters much here. We both have our associate degrees, and he had a year to go before getting a bachelor's."

"Degrees back home, I presume?"

"Yep. But back to what I was saying before, I guess the thought of marriage just takes a lot of faith. It scares me a lot too though."

"What scares you about it?"

"Everything. Losing him, making it last, all the work I know that goes into it." She leaned forward as Riza simply turned up a comforting smile. "The only thing I ever got to see about marriage was David's wife cheating on him with his partner at work."

"That's not what a real marriage or a relationship is supposed to be like, dear. I'm sure you realize that with Sinjin, of course."

"Yeah, and I know he'll never do that to me. I just-I get scared sometimes. I had a great teacher when I started college who told me I just needed to have faith things would work out. Sinjin and I had our fights, even came close to breaking up a couple times, but we work on it."

"That's sometimes the only thing you can do." Riza leaned back and folded her hands over on the table. "Your boyfriend seems like a very nice man, Trina." She looked up to Riza with a smile. "Just like Roy is a good man. Sometimes, men have to work through their own things just as we do. But your teacher was right. Faith is one of those things you have to have in a relationship. Trust and respect too, and maybe a little hope. Things have a funny way of working out. You don't have any doubts about him, do you?"

"No. I guess I just get tired of trying to see where the relationship is going to progress. Do you ever feel like that with the colonel?"

The corners of Riza's mouth pulled back some as the woman began to think. She let out a sigh and closed her eyes, speaking softly. "Sometimes. When you've been with someone for so long, or even on and off for so long, you start to wonder if you should already be with that person. I still love him, and I'm still waiting for him to get over whatever is holding him back, but it's the same thing with me. We both lost someone important to us, and we're trying to work on that. Together. You and Sinjin are working on this whole thing together, right?"

"Yeah."

"As long as you have that, and as long as you're communicating, then you'll make it. There's always going to be parts where trouble is around, sometimes you'll find yourself questioning why you're still hanging on, but if you know the answer, it almost seems like the question just isn't as important anymore."

"Sacrifice too, I guess. Sinjin and Courtney gave up a lot to come here."

"You did too, remember that." She was bewildered by this, uncertain with what exactly she'd given up.

Riza must have noticed her confusion because she then said, "A lot of people want to find their birth parents when they grow up, and I'm sure if they had to travel to an entirely different world without even being guaranteed a way back, most probably wouldn't go."

Trina laughed weakly and lifted her shoulders. "True, but it wasn't like I left much. None of them cared about me. David, his wife Holly, Tori, and her friends didn't give a shit, so why would I?"

"I think a part of you would care. Not to mention it sounds like this David cared about you. He taught you to shoot a gun, put you through college and into that police academy. I don't know about the others but it sounds like you did sacrifice something."

"I guess." She bowed her head and felt her heart constrict in her chest. She never looked at her family back home at more than surface level. David must have cared more than she gave him credit for. "It does say a lot for someone to let you move away to find your family."

"There's a lot of fear involved in that. If someone adopted a child and raised it, then the child wanted to find their birth parents one day, they'd be scared that child would like them more. At the same time, there's always a chance in the back of their minds that that baby will come back to them. Your adoptive family, they don't have that hope or guarantee. If they didn't seem like they cared, but maybe they were just afraid of getting so close only to lose you. Does that seem plausible?"

"With as much as Sinjin and I were trying to find a way to get back here? Yeah. Hell, even Sinjin was afraid of letting me come alone because he didn't think there was a way for me to get back to him." She figured that to be a part of the reason he was here. It was the reason Courtney was here.

"Yeah. Then there's finding your birth parents. What if . . . what if they're not what you think?" She raised an eyebrow as Riza started to tap her fingers on the table. "If they're not what you expect them to be, will you then be unhappy?"

"I don't know. I don't think I would be. I don't expect them to be any particular way. I just want to know them."

"Then, what if you met them and they were just too confused or terrified to bring it up?"

"I don't know." Trina shrugged, uncertain of how she'd respond to something like that. "Why wouldn't they bring it up?"

"If they didn't know how to?"

"Then I would understand. I'd love to have a relationship with them, so if they saw me, I'd like them to come out wit-"They both shot to their feet when an enormous explosion shook the area. They looked in the direction of the sound and the billows of dust rising into the area. Roy and Sinjin rounded the corner and sprinted toward them.

Roy twisted around, nearly faltering at the quick movement, and snapped. Fire rocketed toward the smoke drifting down the street, with the intention of hitting its obscured target.

Sinjin still rushed toward them at full speed. Sweat poured off his face, the dust on his cheeks running off and dirtying his shirt. "Go inside! Hurry!" he yelled breathlessly then coughed.

"No," Riza whispered while grabbing her guns from the holsters on her hip. "It's him."

"Him who?" Trina saw a man stalk out of the smoke, unharmed by the flames Roy shot only moments before. His white hair was dusty, his coat tattered, and his X-shaped Scar conveying that the man was no one to trifle with. His piercing red eyes redirected themselves from Roy to them, bespeaking monstrous threats.

Riza clicked the safety off her gun and stepped in front of Trina just as Sinjin and Roy arrived at their sides. Her eyes narrowed and she pressed the trigger.

The man dodged and then stopped his movements. He stared at the gun in her hand as if he could jerk it out of her grasp with a look. "Stand down, Scar. Next time I won't miss."

* * *

I'd say it's a good conversation


	14. Brush with Fate

Seeking Origins

Disclaimer: Don't own Victorious, or Fullmetal Alchemist

A/N:

* * *

Chapter 14 (Brush with Fate)

"Take one more step and I will shoot." Riza was tense, poised, and ready to strike. Roy stepped beside her, a wild sneer spread across his face. Trina wanted to take Scar on herself, since this man was apparently devoted only to killing.

"Point that gun elsewhere," Scar said in what was a self-righteous tone. "This is not your fight. Protecting this man will not help you." Riza's hands did not tremble, her glare did not falter. Slowly, she narrowed her eyes further.

"The hell it's not. What makes you think it's him I'm protecting, anyway?" Trina did her research on this alleged Isbalian war that happened so long ago. She talked with Roy about it as well. It wasn't a war; it was a massacre. All State Alchemists had been ordered by the Fuhrer to kill anything in their way. It had to be the most horrifying experience. There were even records that the alchemists that questioned or refused were killed without remorse.

It had been discovered recently by the Elric brothers that Fuhrer Bradley was the homunculus, Pride. This made matters all the more serious because every Isbalian had become a sacrifice towards possibly creating the philosopher's stone. Scar was so dead set on murder and his own brand of justice that he couldn't see past the blinders he wore.

Angry, Trina stepped between the two, glaring down Scar. "Hey! What gives you the right to judge people!" Scar raised his eyebrow while both Riza and Roy shouted for her to get back. That this wasn't her fight. She ignored them and took another step forward. "That's right, I know about that war. What makes you think they wanted to be involved? They wereforced! By the Fuhrer himself, the homunculus, Pride!" Scar's eyes widened briefly, as alchemy flowed between the fingers on his right hand.

"This does not concern you, girl. That alchemist standing beside you is a murderer."

"Please! My adoptive father was a police officer, and do you know what they call people like you? Vigilantes? Murderers! I understand people you love were killed but the people you're killing have families. People who love them. Their lives were threatened and they were forced to do what they did and now they should die because you think it'sright they die?"

"Trina!" Roy and Riza both beckoned to her, still attempting to call her back. Scar turned to her, growling. She watched his hand, startled at the alchemy she was seeing. It was hypocritical.

"If you stand in the way of God's justice, you will be struck down with the murderer you claim to protect."

"Scar!" Roy demanded his attention, holding up his hand ready to snap his fingers to light the man on fire. "If make a move toward her, it will be the last thing you fucking do. If you harm her in any way, this stops being about the war and becomes personal." Trina froze and looked back to the two, gasping softly as both Roy and Riza intensified their focus on Scar.

She saw something in them, something she'd not taken enough time to notice. Her lips parted briefly, but just as she was about to speak, she heard Sinjin calling her name. When she turned around, he was in front of her and Scar was upon them. Scar's clenched fist slammed into Sinjin, throwing him into a nearby building.

"Sinjin!" Trina screeched and ran for him, terrified that the blow may have injured him. When the fist made contact, red sparks had flown from him. The others froze as she reached down and hugged him close, screaming as she shook him. "No! Wake up!"

"He is merely unconscious," Scar muttered. "I will not strike to kill unless it is the flame alchemist. Do not worry." Her heart stopped and tears stung her eyes as she gazed down at Sinjin's unconscious form. After several seconds, she let out a violent scream and rose up, clenching her fists, ready to fight.

"You bastard! You fucking asshole!" She charged Scar, who immediately turned towards her.

"Trina stay back!" Riza cried out, but all too late. Scar slammed his fist into Trina's stomach. She felt a jolt of power rush through her, and her body flew back towards the building and over Sinjin's body as consciousness fled.

"Pathetic. It's sad how blind people can be to God's judgment." Roy began to tremble as Riza fell to her knees, whimpering softly. "Why do you bother with your tears, I did not kill them or harm any vital organs. They will be fine."

"N-No…" Riza tore into the air, screaming madly as tears and saliva spewed from her. "Not again! Not again!" Scar's eyes widened as Riza pulled the trigger, still screaming as she fired off all the ammo in her gun. Scar rushed forward, trying to close the gap between himself and the couple. He readied his hand, his arm surging with alchemy.

"You crossed the line," Roy growled, "Now it is personal." With one snap, flames burst from the air and slammed into Scar. Scar flew back, grunting as more fire spawned on him with every mad snap of Roy's fingers. Riza lowered her guns, panting heavily as Roy advanced upon Scar, now being thrown back by every fiery explosion in front of him. Out of ammo, Riza ran for Trina and Sinjin, wrapping her arms around them and shaking them, trying to wake them.

Scar moved backwards, pulling off his jacket and swatting at every burst of flame that made contact with him. He clenched his jaw and grinned darkly at Roy. "So you show your true colors, Flame Alchemist."

"Fuck you! I told you we were forced in the war! We wanted nothing to do with taking out your village! Nothing! You think you're some high and mighty servant of god? You want to know why I'm after you now?" Roy's fingers were beginning to grow raw, but he still backed Scar out of earshot. The killer was managing to maneuver and dodge most blasts. "It's about having someone so important to you come back into your life after being missing for so long, only to have a vigilante serial killer take them away all over again. God help me-no god help you if the next words out of your mouth are self righteous or judgmental in anyway, you hypocritical sack of shit."

"You're going to roast the entire town if you keep this up Flame."

"Screw you!" He snapped his fingers once again, creating an explosion right at Scar's feet, knocking the man back.

"Roy!" Riza's voice hit him like a hurricane, the despair and anguish was remarkable. "She's not breathing! Oh god, she's not breathing! Roy!" He looked over to her, his heart began racing as Riza buried her face into Trina's side. His stomach flipped over as nausea gutted him.

"No…" The hospital wasn't far; it was just around the corner. He could make it, Trina and Sinjin would be fine. He ran for Trina and scooped her up in his arms. He wasn't going to be late this time. No, he couldn't be. "Riza, how is the boy?" Sinjin looked like he was starting to wake. Courtney ran up, waving them off.

"Get Trina to the hospital!" Courtney screamed. "I got Sinjin. Grace is already calling for the paramedics." They would never get there in time for Trina, he had to run.

"Then stay here with him. Riza?"

"No, you're not going to ask me to stay behind."

"I wasn't going to. Just keep an eye out." He heard Scar bellow from behind. Ignoring the man, Roy took off in a run as Riza cried out and fired off a gunshot at the man. "Shit, if that asshole starts chasing…" He looked down to Trina, fear and worry spread over him and adrenaline shot down to his legs, empowering him to pick up the speed. "Hang in there…just hang in there…"

"Colonel? What's going on?" Al's voice? He looked over to see Ed and Al rushing towards him from across the street, they must have come when they heard the sound of the explosions. "Is that Trina?"

"It's Scar! He's right behind us."

"Got it!" They took off behind him in the other direction to distract Scar if he was behind them. Roy wasn't sure at this point. The only thing that mattered was getting Trina to the hospital.

He rounded the corner with great speed while Riza called out for any pedestrian to move out of the way. Just as they neared the doors to the hospital, Trina's eyes started to flutter. He couldn't tell if it was a trick of the eyes or if it was genuine. "Almost there…almost there…" Images flashed through his head of the scorched blanket and the ashes. He'd not been fast enough then. He couldn't save her then.

Never before had he viewed that person with such hatred, such animosity. The person who showed up in reports so many times, only to be the witch behind everything. He'd kill her himself if she ever showed her face around him.

When he got to the hospital, Roy kicked the door open and charged in, demanding the attention of the hospital staff. He called out to nurses and doctors, pleading for their help. A large group of nurses ran up with a ventilator and stretcher, asking what had happened.

It was not long before they had Trina in a room, along with Sinjin who was placed on another stretcher. Roy sat outside the hall with his hands clasped together and forehead bowed onto the knuckles of his thumb. Never before had he prayed with such intensity. Riza sat beside him, her arm around him and her head on his shoulder. With every sob, her tears drenched his uniform more.

He wanted to hunt Scar down, to tear him limb from limb, but he knew doing so would make him no better than the serial killer himself.

A shadow fell over them and he lifted his head up to see Courtney staring down at them. Her face was wet with tears and worry, but her eyes sharp with determination and concern. "It's you two, isn't it?" She asked in a shaky voice. "You're Trina's mom and dad."

* * *

That part's out


End file.
